Touch My Hand
by White Moon Princess
Summary: Matt goes on a world tour with his band, where he meets a mysterious woman that catches his interest. But both of them have secrets and betrayals that could destroy their relationship? Can love really conquer all?
1. First Meeting?

Chapter 1-First Meeting?

Matt Ishida strummed his guitar absently. Their jet would land at JFK International Airport soon. He would once again perform in front of an audience that was filled to capacity. He looked out the window and laid his head against the cool window. Suddenly a face flashed before his eyes. He winced. _I can see her perfectly in my mind's eye. I haven't seen her in months and I can still see her like it was yesterday. Why can't I stop thinking about her?_

He blinked rapidly in order to stop the tears that threatened to come. _I won't let myself cry over her. She's the one who did it…I didn't do anything wrong. But…it still hurts as much as it did when she told me. _

Matt forced himself to put his guitar inside its case and snap the case shut. _I won't think about her. I need to let her go and move on with my life. _

He looked around at his other bandmates. Akio, the bass guitarist had fallen asleep during the flight. Haru, the "Keyboard Man" was typing on his laptop and Naoki was tapping his drum sticks together. All of them had been so excited to go on their first world tour. _I didn't have the heart to tell them that going on tour was the last thing I wanted to do. After all, we worked so hard to make it big…_

Matt felt his stomach flip-flop as the plane landed. He quickly put on his sunglasses and tied his long, blonde hair in a knot before putting a baseball cap on.

Soon the band exited the plane and walked over to the limo that was waiting to take them to their hotel. They wouldn't be performing for a couple of days, so they could go relax and sleep off the jet lag that they were all feeling. The four bandmates piled into the limo and the limo pulled away from their private jet.

Akio nudged Matt's elbow, "We're finally here. The Big Apple…are you ready to take a bite out of it man?"

Matt shrugged. "I don't really care."

"Hey, you okay? You've been more…depressed than usual."

Naoki and Haru looked at Matt curiously. _All of them are worried about me. I have to admit I've been a big pain in the ass lately. Well…at least more than I normally am. _

"I'm just tired. You know all the performances we did in Japan before we left and all. I've been staying up writing some new stuff for our next album too…so yeah…I'm just tired." Matt replied awkwardly.

The subject was dropped after that and they rode to the hotel in silence.

Mimi Tachikawa adjusted her costume anxiously. _Why am I so damn nervous? I've done a million shoots just like this one. Why can't I get this feeling to go away? Ever since I got tickets to Matt's show in New York I've felt like this. I've felt…nervous and uneasy. I…I heard about what happened to him…I can't imagine what he's feeling right now. _

"Mimi darling focus! We have to get these shots to be perfect. Otherwise you won't make it to fashion week."

She turned toward the camera and struck her pose. The photographer snapped the picture, praising her natural talent and brilliance. A few hours later the shoot was over. Mimi sighed as she changed into a sweater and a pair of comfortable jeans. It was cold in New York this time of year. She played absently with one of the strands of pink hair that she had dyed specifically for this shoot.

"This was your best shoot Mimi darling. The judges will be so impressed. I'm sure you'll make fashion week." Her photographer cooed.

Mimi forced herself to smile as she looked over the pictures. She was surprised how well they turned out. The photographer had chosen a futuristic theme and the lighting and costumes were brilliant. Her newly dyed pink hair seemed to complement the scene perfectly. _I can't shake this feeling that something's going to happen. I feel like…I haven't felt like this since my time in the Digital World all those years ago. I haven't felt this sense of foreboding…_

"Come on Meems, let's go celebrate!" Claire, a fellow model, jumped in the air.

Mimi nodded numbly. Of course there would be underage drinking and clubbing tonight. After all…the models had worked so hard these last couple of days to prepare for this shoot, the one that would determine if they would participate in the New York Fashion Week that was coming up.

"Let me just stop off and change. I can't exactly wear a sweater and flats to a club." Mimi replied to Claire's outburst,

Claire nodded as they exited the building and were greeted by the chilly New York night. They both got in the limo that was waiting for them. Mimi quickly changed into a low cut shirt and changed her shoes. She shrugged at her pink hair. _I should have taken the time to have it dyed back…but I guess I can do that later. Right now, it's time to go party. _

She slipped back into the limo where Claire was waiting. They were whisked off to an exclusive club in downtown Manhattan, which was designed especially for celebrities. Mimi and Claire easily entered the club even though the bouncer knew they were underage.

Immediately on entering the club, Mimi ordered herself a drink. _The feeling is getting stronger. Maybe something is supposed to happen tonight. _

Claire disappeared into the crowds of dancing people. Mimi drank a few drinks at the bar and just listened to the pulsing of the music. Suddenly someone sat next to her. The lights were dim and so she couldn't see the face of the person who sat next to her.

"Let me buy you another drink." A husky voice said.

Mimi looked up at the man who was sitting next to her. She shrugged as he ordered her another drink. He handed the bartender his credit card. Mimi's eyes widened as she saw the symbols on the card. _That's a Japanese credit card. Of course it works around the world…but the card is definitely from Japan. _

The man who had bought her a drink put his credit card back in his wallet and turned to face her.

"Something wrong?" he asked while taking a sip of his beer.

"No, I just thought I've seen that credit card before. Are you by any chance…Japanese?" Mimi asked nervously.

He took a long swig of his beer before answering, "Yeah I am. I live in Tokyo. I'm just here on business."

Mimi marveled at how his voice sounded. He was obviously trying to hide his Japanese accent. And he was pretty good at it. If she hadn't seen his credit card, she wouldn't have any idea that he was a foreigner.

"How did you guess I was Japanese?" he asked.

"Well…" Mimi paused. For some reason she felt like she shouldn't tell this stranger that she had once lived in Japan. That she had grown up for the first 13 years of her life in Japan. That she was originally from Odaiba.

"I have travelled around the world with my job. I've been to Tokyo a couple of times. That card is pretty common back there right?"

The man nodded, "You're right. But I won't be going back to that hell hole for a long time. Maybe I'll never go back."

This perked Mimi's interest. _What happened to this guy in Tokyo that would make him not want to go back? I would jump at the chance to go back to Tokyo. I would love to live there permanently. _

"Something bad happen over there? You rob a bank and now you're on the run." Mimi said jokingly.

"Maybe so. Regardless…I need something stronger. Want to do some shots?"

Mimi didn't want to look like a wimp in from of this young, Japanese stranger. She nodded and he ordered them some shots. Both of them finished their shots and then he leaned towards her.

"Want to dance?" he asked, his Japanese accent shining through.

Mimi nodded and followed him to the dance floor. He led her towards a corner where the music was pulsing under their feet. His arms encircled her tiny waist and they began to sway together. She was surprised at how their bodies seemed to mold together. Her breathing grew heavy as his hands began to wander around her body. They were so close to each other that she could smell his cologne. _There's something familiar about this cologne. I feel like I know this guy from somewhere. _

His breathing grew heavier in sync with hers. His lips began to trail kisses down her neck. Mimi gasped in shock. _His lips are so soft and warm. I usually don't get this close to a guy. But I feel like I know this one from somewhere. _

The song ended. Mimi started to pull away, but he maintained his grip around her waist. She looked up and realized this stranger had blue eyes. His eyes were blue like a pure sapphire. But they had a hint of coldness to them. They were cold like ice. _Could it be? No…there's no way. It can't be. _

"You never told me your name. I should thank you for the drinks." Mimi asked breathlessly.

"If I told you that I might have to kill you."

Mimi giggled nervously, "I doubt it. You're just trying to wiggle your way out of giving your name."

He chuckled in her ear, "You certainly are persistent. I've never met a girl who wanted my name so bad. But I'm sure you'd have no idea who I was even if I told you my name."

"Try me."

He sighed, "Fine…my name's Matt. Or at least…that's how you Americans would probably say it."

Mimi's hand had been holding his that were lingering on her waist. When she heard his name, her hands instantly dropped.

"You don't know anything about me Matt. I know…I've heard about you. Matt isn't your real name is it? What's your given name?"

He stiffened against her. She could feel his arms tighten around her waist, which caused her to wince.

"How do you know about that if you've only been to Tokyo a few times?"

"Well I know a lot about Japanese culture. So tell me what your given name is."

Matt sighed. _It's not like I'm going to ever see this girl again. _

"Ishida, Yamato." He answered.

Mimi's eyes widened as the realization hit her. _Oh my hell it is him! I'm dancing with Yamato. Ishida, Yamato…Mr. Cool from our group of Digidestined. The bearer of the Crest of Friendship…it's really him. _

The music began to play again and Mimi forced herself to dance with him. She didn't want him to find out it was her. She hadn't seen any of the "old gang" since she'd left Japan years ago. She couldn't bring herself to see them again. Especially not Yamato…

Especially not after everything that had happened.

_Maybe he won't even remember me. I mean after all…I'm sure I was just that annoying girl that was always dressed in pink to him. Oh hell what am I saying? I'm the one who helped him hook up with Sora in the first place. I was the one who told him the best ways to romance her. I helped him…during those tough times too…_

Matt's hand moved across her waist and up the curves of her body. Mimi glanced at his hand. _He doesn't even realize what he's doing. He never realized what was really going on. He never realized…that I had a crush on him. Of course I wanted to help Yamato with his romance issues, but honestly…the reason I helped Matt win Sora's heart was for her. I knew all along that she was desperately in love with Yamato. I did it for her…even though it ultimately broke my heart when they started falling for each other. _

Her mind wandered back to those moments in her life. She had just turned 13 and had started middle school. Sora, Taichi, and Yamato were a grade ahead of her but they were still supportive in her transition. Jyou and Koushiro were there too. Everything seemed to be going well when Yamato had approached her about Sora. Her mind flashed back to the moment when he'd asked her.

"Mimi-san, you and Sora-san are best friends…damn this is so awkward to ask." He said while kicking the dirt.

She blushed at his curse and because of him. The way his eyes glanced nervously at the ground made her heart start to race.

"What is it Yamato-sama? Is there something…you want to know about Sora-chan?"

Yamato looked up slowly, "Yeah…well…Sora-san is so different from other girls…I really don't…know how to approach her."

Mimi's eyes widened in shock. _He wants me to help him romance Sora-chan. He doesn't even realize how he makes me feel._ Her heart suck to the bottom of her feet as she realized the gravity of what he was asking. _I'll never be able to tell him my true feelings if I help him with Sora-chan. I couldn't betray Sora-chan like that…if she falls for him, then I will never get my chance with him. _

She glanced across the school yard at Sora and Taichi as they were playing a game of soccer. _She'd be so happy though. I know how much she loves Yamato-sama. She wants him more than anything in the world. Ever since they spent a lot of time in the Digital World…she's wanted him. I have to do this…for Sora-chan._

"Alright Yamato-sama. I'll help you win Sora-chan." She held her thumb up and smiled at him, "I know you can do it. You'll win Sora-chan's heart for sure."

Her mind slipped back to her current situation as Matt's warm breath washed over the side of her face. The song had ended and he was looking at her. He was clearly wondering what she was thinking about. He turned her slowly around and looked into her eyes, trying to decipher her thoughts.

"So Matt…what kind of business are you on? What brings you to New York?"

His eyebrow arched. "You seem to know a lot about me. Why don't you tell me?"

"I don't know any more than anybody else. I just know what I've read."

A smirk graced his face. Mimi felt her breathing stop for a moment. _This is so stupid. I still…feel something for him. It's been years since I've seen him and yet the moment I see him again, I turn into a school girl again. _

"I'm here on tour with my band. We're here for a couple of days."

Mimi nodded slowly. "That's good. I was interested when I heard your band's story. Rising from a garage band of sorts to being internationally famous."

Matt led her over to a couch that was away from the music and crowds of dancing people. He sat down and she followed suit.

"You haven't told me much about yourself. I don't even know your name." Matt replied.

Mimi shifted uncomfortably on the couch. _Shit! What am I going to tell him? "Hi Yamato-sama it's been years. I don't know if you remember me at all, my name is Mimi Tachikawa and we went to the Digital World together". There's no way I can say that. _

"Well I'm a model here in New York City. I've done a couple of shows for Prada, Gucci, and a couple other companies. I'm trying to make it to New York's Fashion Week that is coming up. That will really cement me in as a serious internationally known model. And my name is…Tammy. Tammy Evans." She explained.

_Well that was pretty truthful, except my name. Tammy…I totally though that up on the spot. _

"Tammy, it's good to finally have a name to put to a face. But I have to ask…what's with the pink hair?"

Mimi laughed at this question. She had almost forgotten about her hair and its unusual color. "I had to dye it for a shoot I was doing. It makes me really stand out doesn't it?"

It was Matt's turn to laugh. Mimi found herself blushing. _I haven't seen him laugh like that in so long. _

"Yes, it certainly does."

A finger tapped Matt's shoulder and he looked up. His smirk widened as he saw Naoki.

"Naoki, have you found yourself some beautiful women to dance with?"

Naoki grinned, "Of course Matt. So…who is this lovely young lady?"

"This is Tammy. She's a local model. Apparently she's done some modeling for Prada and Gucci. She hopes to make it to New York's Fashion Week."

Naoki's eyes appraised her from head to toe. Mimi shifted nervously. _It's almost like he's undressing me with his mind. _

Matt elbowed Naoki; he almost seemed to have read her thought. "Naoki it's rude to stare. Where are the rest of the guys?"

"Dancing, drinking and doing hell knows what else. I just think that we should get going soon. It's gonna be a rough morning, if we don't stop soon."

Matt reached over and put his arm around Mimi. She forced herself not to tense up or look surprised by his move.

"I don't want to leave just yet. I'm enjoying myself."

Naoki's eyes softened for a split second, "We all know you could use some of that right now. All right, I'll go check on the other guys."

Matt watched as he left and then turned his attention back to Mimi. She looked down at her jeans, trying to think about what to say next.

"You know Tammy…this may seem rather forward of me, but, I really find you…interesting. I'd certainly like to talk more over tea, um…I mean coffee sometime."

A smile crept over her face. _Still the same Yamato…he's trying to seem cool, but he's super nervous. He's definitely thinking too hard. _

"I'd like that Matt. Let me give you my cell phone number."

Matt instantly took out his phone and handed it to Mimi. She blinked as she saw a picture displaying on the screen. It was of him and Sora. She was kissing him lightly on the cheek and Matt's arms were around her waist. His hair hung in his eyes and he had a small smirk on his face. _So…he did get with Sora. I knew he would. I mean why wouldn't he?_

She quickly put her number in and handed his phone back. She bit her lip, wanting to ask him about Sora, but she couldn't find the courage to ask. An uncomfortable silence followed.

"Let me give you my number too, just in case." Matt broke the ice.

Mimi absently handed him her phone. He put his number into her phone and handed it back to her. He looked into her eyes and then looked down at his shoes.

"You're wondering about the picture aren't you?"

Mimi looked up at him in complete shock, "How did you know I wanted to ask about that?"

"I can just tell. You see, you're pretty easy to read. Your eyes…they say a lot about you."

Mimi's eyes locked with his. _He's being completely serious. Does that mean he can tell that I'm telling him a lie? Does he know that I really am Mimi Tachikawa, a fellow Digidestined? _

"And what are they telling you?" she asked breathlessly.

"They are telling me that you are a girl…that wants security. You've been hurt and you want someone who understands you. Someone who really wants to know you for you and not just because you're famous." He answered.

Mimi nodded, "Yeah that's true. You really are good at that. But about the girl in the picture…is she an ex of yours or something?"

She flinched when she saw his posture slouch. He leaned over so his hair fell in his face. But she didn't need to see his eyes to know that this was a painful subject for him. _I know some stuff…but I don't know everything…I wish he could tell me. I wish I knew what really happened that night. _

"Yeah, she's my ex-girlfriend. I just haven't had a chance to change the picture yet."

She touched his long blonde hair, running her fingers through it. He didn't flinch away from her. Bringing up Sora seemed to put him in a completely different universe. He was definitely somewhere else.

"I'm sorry Matt. I didn't mean to bring up something so painful. We don't have to talk about it. It's okay."

Matt suddenly sat up and reached for her other hand. Mimi froze and her eyes widened. Matt's eyes were…soft…not there wasn't the usual ice and coldness behind those eyes. Mentioning Sora had brought out a softness, a tenderness in him. She could see the raw pain there too. _This just happened recently. I can see why that would be. _

"You know…I've been so down since things happened between me and her. But you…you make me feel…okay. You make me feel normal again. I don't feel that darkness that constantly surrounds me since I've been with you."

Mimi's breath caught in her chest. His hand was cupping her cheek. She could feel the warmth of his skin against hers. He was leaning closer and closer to her. She closed her eyes and his lips softly met hers. She marveled at how gently he kissed her. She'd never been kissed like that before.

Suddenly an overwhelming urge to be close to him took over her. She brought her body closer to his as she ran her hands through his long locks. He instantly responded by running his hand down to her waist and pulling her even closer. The bitter pain he felt seemed to radiate in his every movement. Mimi felt her own pain rush out of her. Every moment when she'd watched as Matt and Sora had come closer and closer to falling for each other and knowing her own heart was breaking. Then her own moments of heartbreak with her own ex-boyfriend came back to her. All the little glimpses of his demeaning words, his affairs with other girls, the pain of his punches and physical abuse, everything rushed back to her.

They broke apart after a moment and stared at each other. _He seems to feel my pain. It's like he knows what I've went through. _

"Tammy…" he breathed.

"Hey Matt, it's time to go dude!" Haru called over the blaring music. Akio and Naoki were right beside him, grabbing their jackets.

Matt glanced at his band mates and then back at her.

"Don't go." Mimi whispered longingly.

He touched her cheek and wiped away a tear that had fallen. She reached up and put her hand on top of his.

"I need to go. But Tammy…I promise I'll call you tomorrow. I'll call you first thing. I still need to take you to coffee remember?"

A small giggle escaped her throat and then she returned to being serious.

"Are you really or are you just saying that? I've had guys say they'll call me and they never do."

Matt smirked, "I promise that I will call you Tammy. In fact…I promise you and in order to prove it…"

He opened his wallet and pulled out a necklace. Her eyes widened at the symbol that hung from the cord. This was his necklace…the one that had the Crest of Friendship on it. Every one of the Digidestined had received one the day they had given up their crest and tags to protect the Digital World.

"I want you to keep this safe until we meet up for coffee. It's very precious to me. Then you can return it when I take you for coffee."

Mimi reverently held the necklace in her hands. She knew exactly how precious this was to him. It reminded him of the old days. Of his best friend, Gabumon and all the times they had together.

He leaned down and kissed the top of her forehead. His lips lingered their another moment and then he was gone. Slowly Mimi got up from the couch, she held up the necklace and fastened it around her neck. There was no way she was going to let this go…until they met again.


	2. Remembering

White Moon Princess: Thank you so much to Jaeda star, RK13, Hermione Granger 1598, and PrincessJaded for reviewing on chapter 1. I am going to fix a few kinks I saw from chapter 1 in this chapter and I may repost chapter 1 so that it looks better. Another big thanks needs to go out to my beta SilverDeathAngel. She's a great beta and I would recommend her to anyone who needs a beta for their stories. Just to let all of you know, this story was meant to be a one-shot, but I didn't feel a one-shot would do it justice. It's not going to be a horribly long story (only like 4 to 5 chapters). Anyway enough of my blabbering and on to chapter 2!

Chapter 2-Remembering

Matt ignored his band mates constant questions about Tammy on the way to the hotel. They wanted to know everything about her. That was especially true of Naoki, he seemed almost too curious.

Naoki, Haru, and Akio stumbled into bed and soon Matt could hear their snores coming from each of their respective rooms. But sleep was the last thing on his mind. _I can't stop thinking about Tammy. She different from every girl I've run into. It's so weird…that kiss that we had…it's almost like we completely understood each other in that moment. I felt her pain and she seemed to feel mine. It's like we connected physically and emotionally in that moment. That's never happened to anyone else, not even with Sora._

Matt reached for his guitar and began to run his hand over it. His mind wandered, showing him moments in his life. He noticed all these moments were the darker moments in his life. His parent's divorce, his loneliness and anger in the years after the divorce, almost losing Takeru to Puppetmon, his conversation with Cherrymon and subsequent betrayal of the Digidestined. Then his mind played the experience in the cave of darkness. Lastly, he saw Sora's ultimate betrayal. Those moments when he'd entered the room and had seen the scene before him…played with perfect clarity. Every moment was burned permanently into his psyche. He remembered in horrifyingly perfect detail the rage that occurred afterward. His knuckles ached as he remembered every single punch that had rained down.

He leaned his head back against the couch, staring at the ceiling. _Why the hell did my life have to go so wrong? My stupid parents had to get divorced and I had all the emotional trauma that came with that. And then everything else had to happen. _At that moment he longed for nothing more than to drink himself into unconsciousness or…to have a smoke. But his mind instantly rejected the smoking idea. Mimi had beaten that idea out of his head long ago. He smirked as he remembered the day she had caught him smoking.

It was a school day and he'd decided not to go to school that day. He'd had a huge physical fight with his dad, but while had some bruising on his arms and other places, but his father had managed to miss his face. He walked down the street towards the school. _Why the hell am I heading this way? I guess it's just habit. I won't go in through, I don't feel like going today. _He knew eventually they would call his father and tell him that he had not gone to school, but he couldn't bring himself to care. He was too busy at his job anyway. And then after his job, he always went drinking with his co-workers or friends. So Matt was pretty sure that his father wouldn't give a damn if he didn't show up to school that day.

He smirked as he pulled a white pack out of his pocket. _There's one thing the stupid old man doesn't know. I made off with his cigarettes. He's gonna be so damn mad when he gets home._

Soon he found an alley near the school and he took out a long and thin cigarette. He grabbed the lighter he'd taken along with the cigarettes out of his pocket and flicked it. The bright orange flame lit up and Matt put the cigarette in his mouth. Very slowly and tentatively, he lit the cigarette. He was about to inhale when suddenly there was a tapping of heels coming his way. He looked up and stared into the eyes of Mimi Tachikawa.

Her eyes were wide as saucers and her face had turned as pale as the cigarette he was about to smoke. He put the cigarette to his mouth again and started to inhale when Mimi's face exploded with anger. She reached out and swatted away the cigarette, causing it to fly onto the ground. She winced in pain and her right hand grabbed her left hand, which had swatted the cigarette away.

_Oh my hell! She burned her own hand! Stupid girl!_

He instantly grabbed her hand and pulled her to the nearest snow bank. He plunged her left hand into the snow bank while using his right hand to cover her mouth. _If she screams, she'll alert the whole school. They'll think she's getting raped or something. _

Her scream of pain was muffled and he held her in his arms until she stopped shaking. Then he pulled her hand out of the snow bank and examined it. Obviously it was burned and would probably need to be cleaned and then wrapped up.

Mimi's eyes stared into his. She looked so vulnerable in that moment. _Why would she even care if I was having a smoke or not? Well I'll have to ask her later. She needs help now._

He quickly stood up, pulling her up with him. "We need to take care of that. My place isn't too far from here, so let's go and I'll get that cleaned out."

Mimi silently nodded and followed him down the street. He kept her left hand inside his cold hands, hoping it would dull the pain she was feeling. After unlocking the door to the apartment, he led her to the sink and turned on the cold water.

"Stay there and keep your hand under the water. Hopefully it helps until I can find the first aid kit." Matt said matter of factly.

After a few minutes of looking, he found the first aid kit and walked back into the kitchen. Mimi was looking absently at her hand, seeming to be somewhere else.

"Does it feel any better?"

She jumped at hearing his voice and turned to face him.

"Yes, thank you." She said quietly.

He gently took her hand and sat down at the kitchen table. Mimi followed suit and sat across from him. He began to work on getting the supplies to clean out the wound when he looked up at her.

"Mimi-san, why did you do that? Why do you give a damn if I was smoking a cigarette or not?"

Mimi looked down at her lap, "Well…I was worried when Yamato-sama didn't come to school. Especially when you promised Sora-chan that you would meet her during our break. Then I saw you walking down the street and I decided I had to go talk to you and see if you would come to school and see Sora-chan."

"Okay that makes sense, but why did you do something so stupid? I mean swatting the cigarette while it's still burning is a really stupid thing to do." Matt answered.

After he said that he noticed that she seemed to slouch down a little more in her seat. Her face was soon splashed with crimson and she leaned over slightly so that her blonde hair was covering her face.

"I didn't want Yamato-sama to do something so horrible to himself. Smoking is a horrible habit and it would make Sora-chan sad if she saw that."

"So it was all about what Sora-san would think of me?"

A moment passed before Mimi answered him. "No…that wasn't all. I had to stop you from doing something like that to yourself because you are my friend and I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I saw a friend doing something like that and didn't try to stop them. Plus there's Gabumon to think about. Would he really want you to do that to yourself if he were here?"

Matt's mouth opened and closed in surprise. _I can't believe she used the "what would Gabumon want you to do?" card. But it's true…he wouldn't want me to do something like that to myself._

"Honestly Yamato-sama…I think you're doing this…all the rebellion and other things as an escape and maybe to draw some attention. You see…I think that since your parents got divorced you've felt lonely and broken inside. You don't think your parents want you and so you didn't want to appear hurt by their divorce. But deep down, you felt rejected and abandoned. And now…at least to me…it seems that your father is really busy all the time. He never spends time with you and you haven't seen your mother since the day we left for the Digital World after defeating Myotismon. So it just seems to continue this cycle for you. You're still lonely and perhaps you feel like you have to act out to get your parents attention since that's the only way they will pay attention to you." Mimi explained.

Matt looked away from her gaze. _What she said is pretty much true. How did she know so much when she hardly knows me?_ _I didn't bear my soul to her at all. In fact, we hardly spoke during the whole time we were in the Digital World with the rest of the gang. _

"You're just trying to escape the situation you're in Yamato-sama. And you think the only way out is to drown yourself in something like your father does. But it's okay to feel something Yamato-sama." She paused and touched his hand, "It's what makes us human."

Matt slowly met her gaze. "How do you know so much about me? You hardly even know me."

Mimi smiled at his question, "You're eyes say a lot about you. Just promise that you won't do something like that again. It'll make everyone you love sad if you do something like that to yourself and something happens to you."

He nodded and started to clean out Mimi's wound.

Matt slowly opened his eyes and focused on the darkened hotel room. _She was completely right. I did all those things so that someone would notice me. So that someone would notice the pain I was in…_

Suddenly his phone began to ring. He looked over at the screen to see who was calling him. He opened his phone carefully and put it to his ear.

"Hello?"

"Good evening…um I guess it's good morning in New York huh? Well good morning Onii-chan."

Matt smiled, "Yes it is Takeru. It's what…5 pm there?"

"Yes, Mom is just about finished with making dinner. And I'm guessing you just got back from a night of partying at the nightclubs there?"

"Of course! Would you expect anything less from me?" Matt joked.

Takeru sighed on the other side of the phone. "It makes me worry about you is what it does. I've heard those nightclubs are dangerous places. And I bet you were drinking too."

Matt nodded to himself, "Sorry Takeru. It's harder than it seems. Once you're there…it's hard not to drink. Plus this club I went to doesn't really care how old you are. They knew I was 18 and they gave me a beer without a second glance. I hope you'll ignore my bad example and listen to Mother. You can still be Mother's perfect little boy."

Takeru gritted his teeth, "I don't want to be like that. And you aren't such a horrible influence. Mom just says you're lost that's all."

While shifting on the couch, Matt shrugged his shoulders, "How are things with Hikari-san?"

Takeru's face broke out into a full grin when Matt mentioned her. "Things are going well. We went on our first date a couple days ago. Man, Mr. Yamiya is such a scary guy! You have no idea Onii-chan!"

This caused Matt to break out into a fit of chuckles. He remembered Taichi and Hikari's father very well. _He really is scary, especially when the kid who is dating his daughter is the brother of the guy who beat the living tar out of his son._

"I'm sure he was Takeru, but don't pay too much attention to it. It should be about you and Hikari, not anyone else. If her parents don't like it, then they just need to deal with it. You two are practically spoken for each other since you were kids. There's really nothing that her parents can do to stop you two from loving each other."

Takeru smirked at his brother's comments, "Yeah it's been…interesting. Taichi-kun has been really helpful to us. He's stood up for me and Hikari tons of times."

Matt's hands clenched at the sound of Taichi's name. He hated that name more than anything in this world. But he forced himself to gain some control over himself as he continued the conversation with Takeru.

"I'm glad. Taichi-san knows where his duty lies and that's good that he's responsible enough to take care of it." He replied harshly.

Takeru took a deep breath in. _Mentioning Taichi-kun's name…I knew that would send Onii-chan into orbit. How stupid of me…_

"You know Onii-chan…you should forgive Taichi-kun for what he did. He's really sorry for the way it went down. And…for losing your friendship over it."

Matt snorted as his anger escalated, "Taichi-san doesn't regret anything! He's still fooling around isn't he?! He's not sorry that he did what he did! He's sad that I caught him that's what!"

Takeru jumped at his brother's outburst. "What about Sora-chan? Have you even talked to her at all?"

"Hell no! I sure as hell am not going to talk to her either! I haven't talked to anyone since I left. I really don't want to talk about what happened Takeru. And I especially don't want to talk to those two about it."

Takeru handed his plate to his mother and then walked into his bedroom. He shut the door behind him.

"I'm sorry things happened the way they did Onii-chan. I really wish there was some way I could make it better. But Taichi-kun and Sora-chan…I don't know…"

Matt gripped the edge of the coffee table in frustration, "It doesn't matter anyway. It's over. I'm not coming back to Japan for a very long time…if at all."

Takeru's breath stopped for a brief moment, "Really Onii-chan? You have to come home."

"Well Takeru you need to face the fact now that I might not. I can't stand it there anymore. Everything back there is just a reminder of what happened. And I can't stand to be constantly reminded. I need to get away from everything. That's why I agreed to this tour in the first place."

"Speaking of the tour…" Takeru started nervously, "I was wondering if I could go with you. At least on some of it. I know this is short notice, but Mom just agreed to it. She said I could come in a couple days and spend some time on the tour with you."

Matt was completely flabbergasted at this turn of events. _Mother never wants me to be around Takeru. She thinks I'm a bad influence on him. So why did she agree to this?_

"Well…I'm sure we can manage it. What day are you coming?"

"I want to see your concert so I'll be there by that day so I can see it live." Takeru answered excitedly.

Matt's anger dissipated and he smiled, "I'm glad you're coming Takeru. I'll talk to my manager first thing in the morning and get you a backstage pass and everything. We'll have to arrange some stuff, but I'm sure we can pull it off."

"That's awesome! I'm really excited to see America. Do you think we could see Mimi while we're there?"

Matt's smile faded as quickly as it had come, "Mimi-san is here in New York?"

"That's where she was last I heard from her. It's been a while though. She hasn't talked to anybody for a couple of years." Takeru answered.

"Well trust me little brother, this city is huge and it's really hard to find one person in this city. If she hasn't talked to any of you in a couple of years that probably means she doesn't want to."

"Whatever you say Onii-chan. Well I'll call you when I'm getting on my plane."

"Sounds great Takeru. I'm looking forward to it." Matt answered.

"Now get some sleep Onii-chan. You're going to need it." Takeru chided his older brother.

"Yes Mother." Matt replied sarcastically.

He hung up the phone and slowly made his way to the bedroom. He plopped onto his bed and was carried off into a deep sleep before his head had fully hit the pillow.

* * *

Mimi rolled over in her four poster bed. She could hear her phone ringing on the bedside table. Her eyes darted to the clock. It was just after noon. _Man I slept a really long time. I haven't partied that hard in a long time._

She reached her hand out and grabbed her phone off the table. She slowly put it to her ear. "Hello?"

"Hey Tammy, did I wake you up?"

She smirked at hearing Matt's voice. He sounded just as tired as she did. _He obviously didn't crash last night after he got home. I can't necessarily blame him. I didn't go straight to bed either. _In fact, she'd stayed up for several hours after she'd got home. _I couldn't stop thinking about Matt. I can't believe I got myself in to this. How am I ever going to explain who I really am to him?_

"Sorta. I had a rough night last night. I had a lot on my mind."

"Me too. I didn't sleep as well as I wanted to. But that's what coffee is for. Well…do you want to go to dinner tonight? That should give you and me plenty of time to pull ourselves together."

Mimi smirked at his joke, "Yeah that would be great Matt. Is there somewhere you want to go in particular? Do you just want to meet at the restaurant or do you need my address?"

"Things are actually pretty tight today. My manager was flipping out when I told him I was going to dinner and that I wouldn't be going to this photo shoot he wanted me to do. So maybe we could meet at the restaurant." Matt answered.

She frowned at his explanation, "You know…I don't want to take you away from your work. And photo shoots are important, especially for publicity and all. Your band could use all the publicity it can get, so maybe we shouldn't go to dinner."

Matt shook his head and rolled his eyes, "Are you trying to get out of going out with me?"

"No, not at all. I'm just saying that you shouldn't put off the important stuff at work because of me. We don't need to do anything fancy. I don't mind just eating take-out with you. You don't have to take me to some fancy restaurant and spend tons of money on me." Mimi replied meekly.

This caused Matt to smile. _Wow…most girls totally want to go to the fanciest restaurant in town and have the guy spend tons of money on them. _

"That's really thoughtful Tammy. I know my manager would appreciate it…"

"Then you should do it. I can pick up some Chinese on the way just as long as you tell me where your shoot is at." Mimi cut in.

"Okay, I will do that. I'll find out from my manager and text the address to you. But are you sure that you're okay with just eating take-out? I feel like I'm…cheating you."

A grin spread over Mimi's face as she rolled over, "Matt…honestly I am there for you and I ultimately want what's best for you. All the fancy food means nothing to me. I just want to enjoy the Chinese food and talk. Just you and me…"

Matt sipped a cup of tea while looking over the skyline. _I just wish I was there with her. I wonder what she looks like when she first wakes up. I want to be in bed next to her…holding her while she sleeps. _

"All right sounds great. I'm looking forward to seeing you." He said carefully.

Mimi giggled while digging deeper into the covers. "I kinda wish you were here right now. I wonder what you look like when you get out of bed."

Matt couldn't help but laugh. _It's funny how much we think alike. _"You know that's exactly what I was thinking. I was wondering what you look like right now."

This comment caused her heart to stop. _He's thinking about me too. I can't believe it. I never thought I'd hear him say he's thinking about me. It's like my dream is coming true…he wants me as much as I want him. _

"Well we'll have to see what we can do about that. Right now you're working on promoting your concert in a couple of days and I need to go in and have my photographer take some more pictures for the Fashion Week. So…we'll have to meet later tonight." Mimi answered playfully.

Matt eyebrow raised in intrigue. _Man this girl is definitely my kind of woman. She's okay with just eating Chinese and hanging out. Definitely low maintenance…_

Mimi glanced over at the clock. _He probably has an interview or something to do and I need to go get my hair dyed again. This is going to be interesting. _

"Sorry, I'd love to talk more Matt, but I gotta get ready to go so that I can go to my stylist and get my hair done. My photographer wants it dyed another color. So I'll call you later and get the address okay?"

He frowned at having to let her go, but honestly he needed to go to an interview in an hour and he should have left five minutes ago.

"Alright, sounds great Tammy, can't wait to see you."

"Me either. See you tonight." Mimi answered.

"Bye Tammy."

"Bye Matt." She hung up and rolled out of bed to get ready for the day.

* * *

Mimi stepped out of the limo and looked at the warehouse where Matt and his band was getting their photo shoot done. She had just finished up her own shoot and had picked up lots of boxes of Chinese food for all the band members as well as her and Matt. She walked slowly up to the door and opened it.

She smirked at seeing all the band members in boxers. They were posing in front of the cameras and the photographer was calling directions to them in Japanese. She relished the sound of her native language as she put the Chinese food on a nearby table. She sat in a chair and watched as Matt posed for the camera. _He seems so calm on the exterior. He's just his usual cool self, but underneath…I can feel that he's nervous. He doesn't like doing this kind of thing. _

Soon the photographer finished and the band members slipped into jeans and t-shirts. Matt walked over and stood in front of Mimi.

"Wow is that you Tammy? I'm not used to you without pink hair."

Mimi smiled while twirling a lock of her newly dyed hair. _He hasn't seen anything yet. This isn't even my natural color. I hope my photographer doesn't want to take pictures of me with my natural hair color or else Matt will totally figure out who I am._

"Yeah, do you like it? It's not my natural color, but it's better than pink."

Matt touched a lock of her soft, red hair. She leaned closer to him and her lips grazed his ear, "You looked really sexy in those boxers. You totally didn't look nervous at all even though you were."

His hand continued to run through her long locks. _It's weird how she could tell I was nervous. It's that connection…just like the night at the club. _"I'm glad you thought so. But me and the boys are staved."

Mimi giggled and pointed to the take-out boxes on the table, "I got a little of everything so just dig it."

Soon all the boys were eating Chinese food that was piled high on plates. Matt decided to take Mimi to a secluded corner where they could eat undisturbed. They talked and laughed over the jokes that Matt cracked. Mimi smirked as Matt fed her a piece of chicken from his plate.

The band mates settled in to talking about the latest soccer scores back at home and Matt shrugged his shoulders. _Soccer was more of Sora and Tai's thing. _He turned to look at Mimi.

"You haven't told me much about your family. Do you have brothers and sisters?" Matt asked.

Mimi shook her head, "No, I'm the only child. My parents live upstate in a big mansion. My dad's an executive of a company and my mother's been a stay at home mom since I was born. That's about it."

"Wow…sounds nice." Matt commented.

"What about you? I mean I think I remember something about your parents being divorced or something like that."

Matt looked off into the distance as he answered, "Yeah, they got divorced when I was young. My dad got custody of me and my mom got custody of my younger brother Takeru. I've lived with my dad in Tokyo ever since…sorta."

"Sorta?" Mimi asked curiously.

"Well…I legally got emancipated from him when I was 16. I've been living on my own since."

Mimi's eyebrows rose. _That's a young age. He must have really hated his life at home in order to get legally emancipated. _

"That's amazing that you could do that. I wish…I had that kind of freedom at that age."

"What do you mean?"

Mimi sighed. _This is more than I ever wanted to tell him. I'm getting in too deep…_

"Well actually my parents were really against me modeling. I was recruited when an agent found me at my junior high. My mom and dad…they were completely against it like I said…so I went behind their back and did it anyway. Eventually I did really well and my parents found out. We got in a big fight and basically I left. I moved in with my boyfriend at the time and I've never looked back. I haven't talked to them in a couple of years." Mimi explained.

Matt put his hand on her shoulder. "That really sucks Tammy. I would hate it if my parents did that to me, especially since you seemed so close to them. See I was never close to mine so it wasn't a big deal for me. My dad and I never got along and my mother was never around."

Mimi leaned her head against his shoulder, "I guess we've both had tragedy in our lives. Neither of us have parents who are involved in our lives."

He rubbed her back comfortingly and ran his other hand through her hair. _She really understands. Her parents aren't around either, so both of us know the loneliness that comes with that. _

"Well…I want you know this Tammy…I won't be like that. I completely support you modeling."

Mimi nodded her head, "Thanks that means a lot. My ex-boyfriend…he was supportive at first, but then he got so jealous…he was horrible."

Matt cringed as he thought of what she could possibly mean by that. "That's awful. That guy must have been a real ass."

"You have no idea. He was a total jack ass and then some. I'm glad I finally got up the courage and left him. I never want to be in that situation again. It was the most demeaning thing that's ever happened to me in my entire life."

Mimi buried her head into his shirt as the tears ran down her face. The memories of her ex-boyfriend rushed through her head like they had during their kiss at the club. Matt held her for just a moment and then tilted her chin upward so she was looking at him.

"I promise you…I will never be like that. I will treat you like the queen that you are. I will treasure you every single day." Matt whispered.

Before Mimi could respond to that, he leaned down and his lips locked onto hers. Powerful emotions rushed through her just like they had at the club. She was amazed at what she felt. She could feel how he felt about her. _He's falling for me…just like I'm falling for him. We are two kindred spirits out there that just need comfort and love. He's hurting right now…but it's not like it was the night I met him. That raw pain has dulled. Could I possibly…be helping him heal?_

Matt gently nibbled on her lip, wordlessly asking for her to allow him in. When she did finally allow him in, the feelings she felt intensified a thousand fold. She was drowning in him. And she liked it…

_I could see myself being happy with him. Spending every day together…being together always. We could have a thousand moments just like this one. _

He gently laid her on the couch nearby and his hands began to wander around her body. They kissed for several moments before breaking for a breath of air. Matt gently kissed the base of her throat.

"Matt…I…I don't know how to tell you this…but I think…I'm falling for you." Mimi said breathlessly.

He nodded, "I feel the same. You're so different from the other girls I've been with."

Mimi's heart skipped a beat as she kissed him once more. This kiss was longer and she felt a liquid fire inside her body ignite. She wanted him…more than anything else. _But it's too soon. He doesn't even know who I really am. I've been deceiving him. I should tell him…before he gets in way too deep. _

"Matt there's something…" she started.

He looked up and then his eyes lit up, "Oh yeah, I forgot to ask you…I have to go to charity benefit tomorrow night. I would really like it if you came with me. I don't want to this alone. I really…I can't be without you anymore." He paused unsure if he should open himself up like this, "I don't want to be without you anymore. You make me feel whole…and I haven't felt that in so long. Not since…"

"Not since Sora left you." Mimi whispered reverently.

"How did you know about that?"

Mimi shook her head, "It doesn't matter. All that matters…is that we care for each other. And I want to be with you. Nothing else matters now."

Matt nodded, "So will you come with me?"

She slowly nodded her head, "I'd love to go with you."

"So there was something you wanted to tell me?" He stated.

She shook her head once again, "No, it's nothing."

He shrugged his shoulders as he noticed the necklace she was wearing. He touched the charm that was at the end of the cord.

"Thanks for keeping it safe for me."

She unclasped the hook and handed it back to him. "Now you can have it back. You said it was precious to you."

Matt fastened it around his neck and then kissed her once more. This kiss was much shorter than their predecessors, but was just as meaningful. Akio, crept over and stood by the couch. Matt slowly broke away and looked up at him, "Ready to leave?"

Akio nodded. "We are. We just didn't want to interrupt."

Mimi giggled, "Your band mates are here to steal you away from me again."

Matt smirked as he wrapped his arms around her waist. "If you want…I thought maybe we could go ice skating at the Rockefeller Plaza tomorrow before we go to the charity benefit."

"I'd like that. Call me tomorrow and let me know when you want to go."

Mimi slowly moved out of Matt's embrace. He stood up and led her to the door. They kissed briefly before she walked out to meet her limo that was waiting for her.


	3. Cinderella goes to the Ball

Chapter 3-Cinderella goes to the Ball

Mimi rushed around her apartment as she grabbed her winter attire. She had just received a call from Matt telling her to meet him at the Rockefeller Plaza at 10:30 so that they could go ice skating and then possibly go to lunch. She braided her hair in the mirror and then stopped to look at herself. _Matt's never seen me with my natural hair color. Is it because I'm too afraid that he won't accept me as I am? _

She began to run her fingers through the ends of her braids. _He's falling in love…with Tammy. He's not really falling in love with me. He just thinks that this girl is a model named Tammy Evans who doesn't have any siblings and her parents disowned her years ago. He doesn't really love me does he?_

Absently she walked into the living room and grabbed her gloves. She slipped them on with ease. _I love Matt…I love him so much and it hurts me to keep this secret from him. It's like I'm living a double life. I have my life as Mimi Tachikawa and my life as Tammy Evans. What's he going to think if I tell him the truth? _She turned around and ran back into her bedroom to grab the beanie she'd left on her bed. As she put it on, her fingers trailed along her bedside table. There was a picture of the "gang" together. Her eyes lingered on the tall, blonde boy towards the back. He had his signature smirk plastered across his face as he looked at the camera. _I should tell him. I…I need to tell him. He deserves to know. Perhaps by some miracle…he could love the real me. I'll tell him…_

She grabbed her coat out of the closet in the hall and then locked the apartment door behind her. As she rode the subway to Rockefeller Plaza, she planned on how she was going to tell him who she really was. Once she arrived she had just barely convinced herself that she was actually going to go through with it.

Then she saw him. Across the pond, lacing up his skates. _Oh, he looks like a god. How am I going to tell him?_ She walked over and sat on the bench next to him. She took off her boots and began to lace up the skates she had brought. As he turned to look at her, all the plans and explanations of her true identity when disappeared from her mind. She just finished lacing her skates when she looked up at him.

"Hey…" was all she could managed to get out of her mouth.

"Hey yourself, I'm pretty excited to go skating today."

Mimi gulped and nodded slowly, "Um…there's something you should know. I don't know how to skate…I sorta tried to learn when I was young, but it really didn't work out."

Matt smirked and took her gloved hand in his. "Well there's only one way to learn. We have to get out on the ice." He squeezed her hand when a look of horror crossed over her face, "Don't worry…I won't let go."

Slowly they made their way to the edge of the ice and Matt stepped on first. Mimi hesitated at the edge. "I don't know about this. Maybe I'll just watch you."

Matt turned around and held out both arms. "You'll be fine. I don't really want to skate around and have a good time when you are just standing on the sidelines. At least give it a try."

Mimi reached out for Matt and slowly stepped out onto the ice. As she began to slip, panic seized every sense she had. Her heart raced as she began to fall. Suddenly a pair of strong hands stopped her fall and held her suspended in the air. The scent of his cologne washed over her, causing her head to spin.

"Yamato-sama…" she said breathlessly.

Matt's brow furrowed and Mimi realized what she had just said. She tried her very best not to look horrified. "Wow that was really scary."

He slowly brought her back to a standing position. _There's only one girl who ever called me that. But there's no way…it can't be Mimi-san. I haven't seen her in years. There's just no way that this girl is really her. _

"Yeah, we'll just have to be more careful. I promise…I won't let go of you."

He wrapped his arms around her waist tenderly and skated around the pond with her. Slowly he moved his hands to holding hers. Eventually she was skating on her own without his support. Her fingers intertwined with his as they skated around the rink.

"Matt…are you nervous to perform tomorrow night?"

He shrugged his shoulders, "It's not a big deal now. I used to get really nervous. But now I'm just used to it."

They fell into a comfortable silence as they skated around the pond. Mimi looked down at the ice, once again trying to come up with a way to tell Matt who she really was. _I don't want to sound like I wanted to lie to him. I don't want to sound like I loved keeping this secret from him. Oh, believe me Matt…I don't like hiding this from you. I don't even know why I did. I just couldn't tell you right away who I really was. _

She took a deep breath in and then squeezed his hand. She looked into his blue eyes. "There's something I need to tell you."

Concern blanketed his face, "What is it?"

Mimi opened her mouth and was about to begin her explanation, when a phone began to ring loudly. Matt instantly reached down into his pocket and pulled out his phone. He glanced apologetically at Mimi. "It's my brother. I have to take this. I'll be right back."

He skated a little distance away from Mimi and flipped open his phone. "Takeru, what's going on?"

"Onii-chan, I'm glad you answered. Hey, I'm really sorry I didn't call before, but my flight left in the middle of the night there and I didn't want to wake you up since you didn't sleep very well last night. Well anyway…I'm at the airport…with Hikari-chan."

"Hikari-san is with you?! How did you manage that?"

"Long story. Basically Taichi-kun stood up for us again." Takeru answered.

Matt rolled his eyes. "Well that's good to know. Um…well this'll sound weird, but I'm on a date right now."

Takeru's eyebrows shot up in shock, "Are you serious Onii-chan? How come I haven't heard about this girl?"

"Long story. Anyway…I guess I'll have to find a way to get to the airport and pick you up."

Takeru looked over at Hikari who was talking to another passenger as they got their bags. "I'm really sorry Onii-chan. If I had any American money I would just take a cab."

"Don't worry about it Takeru. I'll see her again tonight at the charity benefit." Matt replied while shrugging his shoulders.

"Thanks, I totally owe you one."

Matt nodded while glancing over at Mimi who was skating idly around the pond. "Okay I'll just tell Tammy what's going on and then I'll get in my limo and come get you."

"Alright see you soon."

Matt hung up his phone and skated over to Mimi's side, "Tammy, I'm really sorry. My brother just called me. He's at JFK right now and I need to go pick him up. He was supposed to call me and tell me when he left Japan so I could prepare. But he didn't and I really need to go…I'm so sorry."

Mimi looked down at the ground. _Just as I was about to tell him, I can't believe this._ She then looked up at him and smiled. "Don't worry about it. I understand. Do you still want to go to the charity event tonight?"

Matt nodded enthusiastically, "Of course I do. I'll call you later and get your address so I can pick you up."

Both of them skated to the edge of the pond and took off their skates. Mimi quickly put her boots on and waited for Matt to put his on. Matt's eyes met hers for the briefest of moments.

"I promise I'll make this up to you. I feel really bad."

Mimi touched his arm gently, "Don't be. This was outside your control. You didn't mean for this to happen. We can see each other again at the benefit tonight. It's no big deal."

Matt smiled as he stood up. "Thanks for being so supportive. I'll call you later."

Mimi nodded and waited for him to turn around and walk away. _He's not leaving. He doesn't want to. He wants to stay with me. Wow…_

"You should probably go. The traffic might be bad and your brother is waiting." She said nudging him along.

He shook his head as he leaned down to kiss her. Chills ran from the top of her head to the bottoms of her feet as they briefly kissed. Then he did turn around and walk away from her. She watched him get into his limo and the limo pulled away into the congested traffic of New York City. A sigh escaped her lips as she picked up her skates and made her way to the subway.

* * *

Matt rushed into the airport. Tammy had been right about the traffic. Getting to the airport had been an ordeal in and of itself. He sighed in relief when he saw Takeru and Hikari sitting in some seats talking and eating snacks out of Hikari's backpack. He ran over to greet them.

"Takeru! Hikari-san!" he shouted.

Both of them looked up and smiled at Matt. Takeru hugged his brother heartily and Matt awkwardly shook hands with Hikari.

"I'm glad you made it Onii-chan."

Matt nodded while picking up some of their luggage. "I'm glad I made it too. Traffic was nuts. Well let's get your stuff and take you to our hotel. My manager was able to get a room next to ours that you guys can stay in."

Matt and Takeru loaded the bags into the limo and all three of them slipped into the limo. Matt turned to Takeru, "I'm just glad you're here little brother. I was wondering if you and Hikari-san wanted to come to a charity benefit later tonight. The whole band is going and I don't want to leave you guys alone in the hotel."

A glint appeared in Takeru's eyes followed by a sly smile, "So do we get to meet this mystery girl you're dating at the charity event?"

Matt avoiding his gaze by looking out the window, "Possibly…"

Takeru's sly smile widened into a full grin. "So tell me about her. You didn't even tell me you were dating anyone."

Matt glanced over at Hikari. She had stayed silent since the moment he'd seen her. She hadn't said one word to Matt at all. _She probably still hates me for what I did to her brother. She has ever reason to do that. I would if Taichi had done something like that to Takeru. _

"I would like to go to the charity event Yamato-san. Is your band playing there?" she broke the silence that had followed after Matt refused and answer Takeru's question.

His blue eyes locked with her light brown ones before he answered, "Yeah, we're performing a couple songs. If both of you want to go then I'll make the necessary arrangements."

Hikari looked over at Takeru. Something passed between them though no words were spoken. Then both of them turned to face Matt again.

"Sure we'd love to go Onii-chan." Takeru stated.

"If it's not too much trouble." Hikari added.

"It isn't. I'll just make some calls. And I'll need your sizes so we can get some clothing picked. I assume you'll want to pick it yourself Hikari-san." Matt answered.

Hikari nodded and smiled, "Thank you that would be great."

Matt just watched out the window as Hikari and Takeru chatted quietly in a corner. _I'm glad that Takeru is happy with Hikari. And I certainly wish the best for them, even if I can never forgive her brother for what he did. _

Soon Hikari and Takeru were unpacking in their room. Matt made the necessary calls and walked into their living room to tell them about the clothing company that would be coming to help Hikari pick a dress. His eyes widened at seeing them kissing on the couch. He cleared his throat loudly, which caused them to break apart.

"Sorry to interrupt." Matt said clearly embarrassed.

Takeru's cheeks erupted in crimson at having his brother catch him kissing Hikari. "So what did you find out Onii-chan?"

"A clothing company is coming this afternoon to help Hikari-san pick her dress. I've already ordered an extra tuxedo for you and make-up and hair artists will be on hand, just the usual stuff."

"Thank you for your help Yamato-san. I hope it wasn't too much trouble."

Matt shook his head, "Oh and someone from Harry Winston will be coming by with some samples for you to try with your dress."

Takeru's mouth dropped open, "Harry Winston? Aren't they one of the best jewelry companies in the world?"

"Yeah, so what? I had to order something anyway so I figured I might as well ask them to come up with some stuff for Hikari-san to try."

Takeru smiled. _Onii-chan is really attempting to be civil with Hikari regardless of what Taichi-kun did. I'm glad he's making an effort. _

"Thanks Onii-chan. It means a lot to both of us."

Matt shrugged and turned towards the door. "I have some things to do. The clothing company will be up in about an hour and a half. So I'd take a quick nap now. We're going to be out late."

Takeru and Hikari nodded as Matt left the room. He walked into his room and shut the door. _I need a nap myself. These last couple of days have really worn me out. _He slowly laid down on the bed and threw the covers over his head. It took him a while to fall asleep, but he finally did.

* * *

Mimi sighed as three women were helping her with her dress. The way the dress hugged her curves made her feel like the luckiest woman in the world. It made her feel like Cinderella going to the ball, where she would surely meet her prince charming.

She ran her fingers down the deep violet fabric of the dress. It was soft to her touch and the way the dress was cut flattered her figure. She smirked as one of the women tightened her corset. _I have an hour glass figure already, but that corset really does make it look amazing doesn't it? _

A hair stylist was waiting to put fix her hair and the make-up artist was taking out the colors that he would use on her face. Suddenly her phone began to ring. She quickly got off the step that she had been standing on for the last hour and grabbed her phone out of her purse.

"Hey, I was wondering when you were going to call?" Mimi said teasingly.

"Yeah sorry pretty girl, I fell asleep and I just woke up." Matt answered.

Mimi giggled as she got back on the step and the women resumed their work of fitting the dress. "I'm sorry; I've kept you up pretty late these last couple nights huh? Well I hope you feel better now."

He began to style his hair in the mirror as he smirked at her comment, "I do feel better. I need to be at my best if I'm going to perform and then dance with you afterwards."

"We're dancing?"

"Of course, I assume if you can grind in a club, that you can get the hang of a waltz or something like that." He replied.

"I'll try my best. But don't be surprised if I step on your feet."

Matt laughed as he reached for his favorite comb, "I'll do my very best to dodge your feet."

One of the women tapped her shoulder and motioned to the hair stylist's chair. Mimi sat down in the chair as the woman began to brush through her hair.

"So you need my address so you can pick me up?"

He put the comb down and walked over to put the coat of his tuxedo on. "Yeah I do. I'll be coming in the next hour or so."

Mimi bit her lip. _That certainly doesn't leave much time does it?_

"Okay well the address to my apartment is on the corner of Broadway and 8th Avenue. You'll see an apartment building and I'm on the sixth floor, apartment number seven."

Matt nodded as he wrote down the directions she had told him, "I'd better let you get back to getting ready. I'll get in the limo pretty soon and start up there. You're apartment is pretty much across the city so it'll take me a while to get there."

Mimi breathed a sigh of relief, "That sounds great. I'll see you then."

She hung up quickly and told her hair stylist and make-up artist that she didn't have much time. They busily began to get to work. She watched as the minutes ticked by and the time for Matt's arrival drew closer and closer. Resisting the urge to bite her nails, she shooed the make-up artist, hair stylist, and dress fitters with just a minute or two to spare.

This barely left her enough time to stash the pictures of her times with the Digidestined inside her closet. Then she heard a knock at the front door. She paused and looked at herself in the mirror in the hall before running to answer the door.

She marveled at seeing Matt standing in the doorway. _He looks…so sophisticated in that tux. And he looks so damn sexy. I never thought I'd get to see him where something like that in my entire life. _

"Wow…you look…amazing." Matt whispered, apparently in just as much awe as she was.

"Thank you."

Mimi reached for the clutch that she would be taking and a long coat to keep her warm during the cold night. Matt stepped forward when she was turned around and shut the door behind him. This caused Mimi to turn around in slight surprise.

"I brought you something. I…hope you'll like it."

She watched curiously as Matt took out a box. It was bigger than the average ring box. _Does that mean…he got me something more than a ring? What is he up to?_

He looked away sheepishly as he opened the box. Mimi's eyes widened as she stared at the jewels in the box. The diamonds in the necklace, earrings, and bracelet twinkled back at her. _Oh my…why would he get me something like this?_

"Oh Matt…" she said breathlessly.

Worry crossed over Matt's face, "Do you not like them?"

Mimi shook her head furiously. "They are beautiful. I've never had someone give me a present like this. I'm so…I don't know what to say."

She blinked away tears and turned away from him so that he wouldn't see her cry. _He really put some thought into what to get me. I haven't had someone care about me like that in years. Especially since my fallout with my parents. _

"Tammy…"

He gently took her wrist and slowly turned her around. Tenderly, he wiped away the tears that had begun to form. "You are worth it. I got these for you not because I wanted to impress you with these jewels, but because…I really care about you and I know that you deserve something like this. You deserve this Tammy. You really do deserve this."

Slowly she nodded and with Matt's help, she put the jewelry on. Then they walked down to the limo and she slid into the limo next to Matt. Her eyes wandered around the limo until they rested on the couple who was across the seat from them. Her eyes widened in horror.

_What are they doing here? I can't believe this! They'll recognize me! And then they'll tell Matt and I'll lose him forever! _

Matt looked over at Takeru and Hikari before looking back at Mimi. "Oh, um…Tammy, this is my younger brother Takeru and his girlfriend Hikari. Hikari-san and Takeru, this is Tammy."

Mimi shook both Takeru and Hikari's hands nervously before holding Matt's hand for comfort. _I can see it in their faces. They recognized me. They know who I am and they are wondering why Matt doesn't see it. _

The air inside the limo was charged with tension. She almost cried with relief when the limo pulled up to the charity event. She rushed into the building, pulling Matt along as she almost rammed her way through the crowds. But no matter how much she tried to run away from it, they were all seated at the same table.

Dinner seemed to last for an eternity. Takeru and Hikari asked her basic questions and she answered them politely, so that she wouldn't draw Matt's suspicion.

Mimi looked down at her clutch once the waiter had cleared away their plates. _I can't take this. I need to do something. I'll just go in the bathroom and hope that I can sink into the floor. _

She looked over at Matt nervously, "Could you excuse me for a moment?"

Matt turned his attention away from Takeru and focused on Mimi, "Certainly."

Mimi quickly pulled her chair out and rushed to the bathroom. She gazed in the mirror, studying her reflection. _I'm such a fraud. Takeru and Hikari can see right through me. They know exactly who I am and are certainly wondering why I haven't told Matt. I…how can I tell him now? He'll hate me for lying to him. _

Suddenly the door to the bathroom opened and Hikari slipped in. She gazed at Mimi for a moment before gliding to her side. Mimi eyed her nervously, waiting for her next move. To her amazement, Hikari smiled and hugged her.

"Mimi-san…it's so good to see you again."

At that moment, Mimi was speechless. _I was expecting…condemnation. After all, I am deceiving her boyfriend's older brother. _

"Hikari-chan…"

Hikari looked up at Mimi as she let go of her, "You look so beautiful Mimi-san. But…why haven't you told Yamato-san who you are?"

Mimi looked away for a moment, "It's…complicated. I felt like it wasn't right to tell him. Perhaps…well in any case if Yamato-sama knew exactly who I was…he would hate me. All I ever did when we were kids was annoy him. He couldn't love the real me. So I guess I had to tell him a lie."

Hikari shook her head. "Oh, Mimi-san that's not true. I really believe that Yamato-san would love the real you if you gave him a chance. It's not right to deceive him like this. He deserves to know the truth."

Mimi sighed, "I don't know how to tell him."

Hikari's eyes softened. "You'll have to find a way. Just tell him the truth and I'm sure he'll understand."

Slowly Mimi nodded her head. _This is the right thing to do. I need to tell Matt the truth. He deserves to know who I really am. If he can't love me for who I really am…then he's not the man I thought he was and he's completely not worth it. _

Mimi and Hikari walked out of the bathroom and worked their way through the crowds towards Matt and Takeru. Mimi gulped as she stood at Matt's side. _Oh my hell, how am I going to do this? _

"Matt…I need to talk to you."

Matt turned to look at her. But his eyes suddenly flicked away from her face and they darkened. His face was suddenly filled with rage. Mimi took a step back. _It's scary…there's so much hate written on his face. _

Time seemed to slow as she turned around to see what Matt was looking at. Once she saw them, she gasped audibly. She watched as they slowly approached. _This is bad! This is really, really bad! No wonder Matt's pissed. _

Takeru turned around and smiled, "It's good to see you Taichi-kun, Sora-san."

Hikari also turned around and ran to hug her brother. Mimi watched as Matt's body tensed. He stared at Taichi with a death look.

Mimi touched his arm lightly, "Matt…"

He gaze turned towards her, "Come on."

She nodded and followed him as he walked away from Taichi and Sora. They hurried to the balcony and looked over the New York skyline. For a long time, neither of them said anything. Mimi summoned some courage and took Matt's hand in hers.

"I'm sorry Tammy. I didn't mean to…scare you. I just…"

"You don't need to say anything. I understand." Mimi cut him off.

"No I do. You deserve an explanation. You see…that girl in there…that was my ex-girlfriend. She's the girl that I was with before I left Japan. And that guy with her…was my best friend." Matt said huskily as he stared out at the landscape.

Mimi squeezed his hand, "And you really loved her, didn't you?"

Matt didn't answer for a moment, and then he slowly nodded, "Yeah…I did."

_This really hurts him. I can't believe…Sora would do something like to make Matt like this. I can't believe her. Poor Matt…he loved Sora so deeply…I can feel how much she meant to him. _

"Matt, I'm so sorry. I…I don't know what to say."

Matt's sapphire eyes turned to meet her caramel ones. Her eyes widened to see the emotion in those eyes. _He wants to cry…but he won't let himself do it. Matt…it's okay to cry. It's okay…_

"Don't say anything." He murmured as he drew her closer to him.

Mimi wrapped her arms around his neck. He leaned down and kissed her hungrily. This kiss was much more passionate then their first kiss at the nightclub. _He wants to forget about Sora and he's seeking comfort in me. Yamato-sama…I'll never do anything like that to you. Never will I break your heart like Sora-chan did…_

They kissed for several minutes. Mimi had to gasp for air in between their kisses. Matt was ruthless…he was so overcome by his encounter with Sora...

_He's not really himself. Seeing Sora has pushed him over the edge. _

"Onii-chan...oh my…I stepped in at the wrong moment!" Takeru said in surprise.

Matt's eyes flicked over to look at Takeru and then he pulled away from Mimi. "Yes, you did come in at the wrong time Takeru. What is it?"

"Your band mates were looking for you. They are getting ready to perform."

"I'll be right there." Matt growled.

Takeru shrugged his shoulders and walked away. Mimi turned to face Matt once again. Matt took her hands in his.

"Tammy…I'm sorry you had to see that side of me. Sora…she brings out a different side of me, a side that I'm not proud of."

Mimi shook her head, "It's okay to feel hurt Matt. Whatever this girl did to you…it was horrible and you're hurting inside. I think that it's perfectly human to feel hurt and angry after you lose someone you cared about. So you have nothing to apologize for."

Matt's face softened as he leaned down to whisper in her ear, "Thank you. I don't know where I'd be if I didn't have you."

Mimi nodded as she turned her face and kissed his cheek, "I'll be watching. Do your best."

Matt looked into the room where he would be performing and he nodded. He let go of her hands and soon he disappeared into the crowd.

* * *

Soon Matt stood behind the stage preparing to perform for the crowd at the benefit. He looked down at his guitar with dread. _Why the hell am I so nervous? I haven't been this nervous in a long time. _

"I hate to see you so nervous Yamato."

Matt stiffened as he turned around. He glared at the athletic girl who had once been his girlfriend…Sora Takenouchi.

"What are you doing here?" Matt hissed.

"Takeru told us about how he was coming to see you play at your concert. Taichi thought that it would be a good idea for us to come…and apologize properly."

"Oh that's just rich Sora! You decide to apologize now! Well it's over Sora! There's no way I'm coming back after what happened!" he roared.

"Yamato…I…I'm sorry. I didn't want you to find out like that. I planned on telling you, but then you found out on your own."

"Yeah about that…you didn't even have the respect to tell me! You just decided to sneak around instead! After all that we had been through, you didn't even love me enough to tell me that it was over!"

Tears filled Sora's eyes. Matt glared at her as his anger flared. _I hate her. The one girl I ever loved…she betrayed me without a second glance. I hope she cries herself a river because I don't give a damn about her anymore. _

"And of course it had to be with Taichi-san of all people! Why did you choose him? You must have known it would hurt me! You brought me in with your words of undying love and then you turned around and stabbed me in the back! You make me sick Sora! Just looking at you makes me sick!" Matt continued on his rant.

Sora listened with tears sliding down her face. Once Matt had finished, she began to sob. _He…He's completely right. I was selfish and now I can see how much this whole incident hurt him._

"Yamato, please listen to me. I didn't do this to hurt you. I was selfish…I wasn't thinking about anyone but myself in that moment. You don't know how much it's hurt me to think of how you must be feeling. And you didn't give me a chance to properly apologize for what happened. You wouldn't return my phone calls and then you suddenly left the country without telling anyone. I had to find that out from Takeru. But please know…I never meant to hurt you. And…I still love you." Sora explained.

Matt stiffened as he heard the last sentence. _She can't really mean that. She's with Taichi-san now. It's over between us. I can't…I can't be with her with the thought of her being with someone else always in the back of my mind._

"Sora…it's over. I can't be with you. I won't…I won't get back with you. I can't handle the thought of you being with anyone else." Matt answered.

"But…"

"No Sora. It's over. You need to move on. I'm moving on with my life and I don't want you or Taichi-san in it. It's over." He interjected.

Sora shook her head and grabbed onto Matt's arm as he turned to leave. "Yamato please…please don't do this."

Matt pulled his arm out of her grasp. "It's over. You made a choice that day and now you have to live with it. Accept responsibility for what you did Sora."

He didn't wait to see her reaction to his cold reply. He walked out the room, leaving Sora…for the last time.

* * *

Mimi mingled in the crowds of people, waiting for Matt's performance to start. She looked around nervously, hoping she wouldn't run into Takeru and the others. She hoped that Taichi and Sora wouldn't recognize her just as Takeru and Hikari had.

She grabbed a glass off the tray that the waiter was carrying around and began to drink it, hoping it would calm her nerves. Her eyes began to scan the crowd as she walked. Her eyes stopped on a man who was talking to a group of people. His long blonde hair hung in his face, but his stature and hairstyle caught her attention.

_Please don't let it be him. This is the last thing I need right now. _

She turned and walked away before she could confirm her suspicion. She took another sip of the drink in her hands. _Let the stupid performance start. I don't think I can avoid him forever. _

She hurried out onto the balcony where she had stood with Matt. She forced herself to calm as she drank the last of her drink. _There's no way that I'm going to let him ruin everything for me. I'm done with him. I love Matt now and that's all that matters. _

"Trying to run away from me are you?"

Mimi gasped as a man's strong hands gripped around her waist. She whipped around and faced him. "It's over Michael. And as for running…I don't ever want to see you again."

Michael smirked at Mimi's response. "You think that you could hide from me by coloring your hair and changing your address. Well you're wrong. I always know where you are Mimi. You can never escape me."

Her head turned as the music began to play inside the room. Matt was starting his performance. _I can't miss his performance. I have to get away. I can't…I can't fight off Michael, but I have to try. _

She knew her only chance was to distract Michael and then strike. _And I know just how to distract him._

Using that moment of distraction that she had created by looking towards the crowds of people that were watching the performance, she grabbed Michael's collar and smashed her lips onto his. She moved in the way that she knew would cause him to focus his attention on her.

He responded with eagerness. He pulled her closer to him. _This is my chance. I hit him hard and fast. Then run for dear life. _

In that moment, she jerked her knee up and forced her elbow up into his jaw. There was a sickening crack and that's when Mimi slipped out of his grasp and started to run towards the crowd. But she didn't get very far. Michael's hand grabbed her wrist with a surprising amount of force. She gasped in pain and he used that moment of pain to pull her into him.

Mimi opened her mouth to scream for help, but it was quickly silenced as Michael covered her open mouth and pressed harder against her wrist. Suddenly she slumped against him and Michael moved both of them into the shadows near the corner of the balcony.

"I'm not letting you out of my sight again Mimi dearest. You and I are meant to be together…we will be together. After all, you wouldn't be here without me. I took care of you when your parents had kicked you to the curb and this is how you repay me." Michael hissed in her ear.

Mimi moaned in pain as the pressure on her wrist started to become near unbearable. The music inside the benefit ended and there was clapping. Matt told the crowd thank you and then he stepped off the stage. _Matt…help me. I can't do this by myself. _

"Oh…I see. He's your new man now. I always had a feeling you'd hook up with someone from the old gang. But unfortunately you won't get to be with him for very long. I have plans for us."

Mimi struggled against his grip, but the pain was excruciating. It felt like at any moment her wrist would snap. She perked up as she heard Matt's voice inquiring after her. He was looking for her. _Matt please come find me. I'm so scared. I don't want to be torn away from you like this. I don't want to lose you like this. _There was only one thing she knew for sure, and that was that she had to get out of here…now. Matt's voice was moving further and further away with every passing second.

In desperation, she slammed her heel into Michael's foot. This again caused him to break free for a split second. _I can't possibly run away fast enough. So there's only one thing to do._ She used the moment she had to pry his hand off her mouth.

"Matt!" she screamed.

Michael's anger flared as he heard Matt's footsteps coming towards them. "You stupid whore!"

He slapped Mimi across the face and smirked as she fell to the ground from the sheer force of it. Matt's eyes widened as he saw the scene before him. He looked up at Michael, allowing his hatred to flow through him.

"You sick bastard. You hurt her for no reason! She did nothing to bring this on!"

Mimi looked up long enough to see Matt's fist crack Michael's jaw. She shuddered in fear at seeing the hatred in his eyes. _He's…a demon when he's like this. He won't stop until Michael is dead. Matt can't be controlled when he's like that. It's like when he was deceived by Cherrymon in the Digital World. _

Blood spurted in all directions as Matt mercilessly punched and kicked Michael. _There has to be a way to stop him. This isn't the real Matt. It's not really him. _

Mimi staggered to her feet and ran towards Matt. Michael was begging for mercy in between Matt's assaults. Matt smiled evilly, "You don't deserve mercy, you worm. You deserve everything that I'm giving you. You hurt her for no reason and now…you're going to feel what it's like to be hurt and defenseless."

He laughed as he punched him once more and blood splattered onto his face. Mimi ran to Matt's side and grabbed his arm as he was about to punch him.

"Stop this! It's not really you Matt! You don't want to hurt him! You're letting your anger get the best of you! You don't want to turn into a monster! Don't be that monster Matt…just let it go."

She took his hand that was covered in Michael's blood in hers. "I know you don't want this. You don't really want to hurt Michael. You were just scared that's all. You were scared for me and you overreacted. But you don't need to kill Michael and if you continue to beat up on him then eventually you will."

Matt stopped and looked up at her. _She's right. I was scared. I was so scared that he would take her away from me. So I reacted and let my anger take over me. It's just like when Cherrymon made me believe that Taichi-san was my enemy when he really wasn't. _

He slowly leaned his forehead against hers, "I'm so sorry you had to see that Tammy. I'm usually not like that."

Michael's eyes widened in surprise and he opened his mouth to speak, but Mimi shot him a death glare and he quickly shut his mouth again. Then she turned her attention back to Matt. "I know that. I know you're not like that. You just got scared."

Matt slowly stood up and helped Mimi to her feet. He looked down at his bloody hands and then up at her.

"We should probably go clean up."

Mimi followed Matt as they made their way through the crowd. She held her head high as the stares from the crowd pierced through her like knives. Her head turned when Matt squeezed her hand reassuringly. They walked towards the bathrooms together and stopped at the hallway that led to their respective bathrooms.

"I don't want to go alone." Mimi whispered nervously.

Matt looked at the door to the men's room. Then he looked at the door to the women's room. _She's really shaken up. That creep…if she wasn't here…I'd go back and finish beating him to a pulp. _

"We could just leave. I honestly…don't really want to be here anyway." Matt answered.

Mimi looked back into the room and saw Takeru, Hikari, Sora and Taichi all talking and laughing over drinks. Matt followed her gaze and looked at them too.

"That's exactly why I don't want to be here. I'll just go wash my hands and then I can tell my brother that we're leaving. We'll just need to call another limo to take him back to the hotel when he's ready."

She nodded and Matt slipped into the bathroom. He reappeared a moment later, his hands completely washed clean of Michael's blood. He walked over to Takeru and the others quickly, touching Takeru's shoulder to get his attention.

"I'm leaving Takeru. I'll call and make sure a limo is waiting for when you and Hikari are ready to go. Some bastard attacked Tammy out on the terrace and I need to go. I can't stand being around this anymore." He said while eyeing Sora and Taichi.

"You sure Onii-chan? I mean I understand if Tammy needs to go, but…Taichi-kun has been meaning to talk to you."

Matt stiffened and his nostrils flared, "I'm done talking. I got enough of that from Sora. I'll see you later."

He turned and walked away before Takeru could reply. As Matt joined Mimi by the bathroom, she noticed that tears were running down Sora's face as he watched Matt's back. _She really does care about him still. It's terrible that Matt just can't let it go…whatever it was. She obviously cares very deeply for him. _

"Well I got that taken care of. Should we go?"

With a last look at Sora and the others, she followed Matt outside into the limo that was waiting for them.

* * *

After a short conversation in the limo, it was decided that they would go back to Mimi's apartment so that they could have some privacy. She opened the door and walked into her apartment.

"Alright I'll be just a minute while I clean up a little bit." Mimi said while looking at the blood that was drying on her hands.

Matt nodded and Mimi disappeared into the bathroom. He looked around her apartment. _She definitely has nice stuff. This girl is all about color coordination. _He sat down on the couch in her living room and gazed at the carpet nervously.

Mimi smirked at seeing him on the couch. _He's so cute when he's nervous. And he doesn't usually show it so I guess I'll enjoy it while it lasts. _The fabric of her dress rustled and his head shot up.

She joined him on the couch and took his hand in hers. "Listen Matt…I think you should know why that guy was…doing stuff to me. That guy was my ex-boyfriend…Michael."

Matt's eyebrow rose, "Did you dump him or something?"

"Yeah I did. I couldn't take it anymore so I finally worked up the courage to leave him and I did. He's been pursuing me ever since."

A shiver ran up Matt's spine. He forced himself not to physically shiver at the thought of that man staking her. _It makes me physically sick to think of what she must be going through. What she has to live with…_

"Tammy…"

Mimi noticed the color leave his face after she told him. _It makes me physically ill too. I'm haunted by Michael's voice that plays constantly in my head. _

"Matt…there's something I'd like to ask you…if you don't mind…" Mimi stammered nervously.

"What is it?" he replied gently.

"You and your girlfriend…she really seemed to care about you even now. It seemed to me that she wanted you back. But you didn't even look at speak to her the whole night. So…what happened between you two?"

_Oh hell…I hoped she'd never ask. That's still a sensitive subject…_

"Well…Sora and I have known each other since we were kids. We even went to the same school, same teachers, everything. We started to get serious in Middle School. And then once we hit high school I started to get famous with my music. That took a toll on Sora. People were always photographing us together and she hated the media invading her privacy. But I thought that things were going just fine. I'd even…bought her an engagement ring. I guess…she got sick of me and my fame." Matt paused as he began to choke on his words.

Mimi rubbed her thumbs across his hands in slow, circular motions as she waited for him to continue.

"I had band practice and Sora was supposed to meet me at my apartment afterwards. I came home from band practice and I heard noises coming from my bedroom. I was very quiet as I opened the door and…Sora was having sex with my best friend Taichi-san. I caught them right in the middle of the act. Sora was extremely embarrassed and she tried to apologize, but I lost it." Matt stopped for a moment as his vision began to blur.

"I beat Taichi-san up within an inch of his life…he was unconscious when Sora called the ambulance. Within hours of the incident, we had been offered a chance for a world tour. I really didn't want to go, but to make the guys happy I went along. And here we are."

Numbness spread over Mimi as Matt finished his story. _I knew it was bad…but I didn't know it was that bad. Matt was ready to marry her and she pulled that kind of stunt on him. I can't begin to imagine what that would feel like. _

"Matt…that's terrible. I'm so sorry. I know how much you loved Sora-chan. She really meant a lot to you and she betrayed you by doing that with Taichi-san. You're so afraid of being alone and you've gone through so much…I can see why you are…so cold sometimes." Mimi paused as she looked up at him, with tears brimming in her eyes, "I promise you that I will be better than that. You are the one I want to be with Matt. I could spend forever with you and I'd consider it a tremendous gift."

_Those eyes…she looks so much like Mimi-san right now…_

Matt leaned down and their lips met. The tenderness of the kiss reminded her of the night they had been reunited at the club. _I want to spend forever with him. I'd give up everything…walk away from the life I've built so that I could be with him. _

_Tammy…she's really something special. Sora meant a lot to me and I think it'll take me a lifetime to get over her betrayal. But when I'm with Tammy…I feel like I'm completely whole. She makes me want to be the kind of man she deserves. She and I have both had tough times in our lives and I want to weather the storms of life with her by my side. _

Suddenly Matt's kisses became more urgent and passionate. The room suddenly faded and there was nothing but the two of them and their love. Matt's kisses on her neck felt like paradise. Her hands on his skin caused him to kiss her more as he picked her up. Mimi pointed towards her bedroom and without missing a single kiss; Matt took her into the bedroom and shut the door behind him.


	4. Revelations

White Moon Princess: Sorry it took so long to get this chapter out. I didn't hear back from my beta as quickly as usual and I had so writer's block. I just want to thank all the loyal reviewers. I love all of you and thank each and every one of you for your reviews. It keeps me motivated and I grin and do a happy dance every time I get a review in my mailbox. So please keep the reviews going. Also the next chapter will be the last chapter. But I have already started a new story and I hope that all of you will read it when I get the first chapter done. But I'll talk about that more next chapter. Again thank you, thank you to all who review and please keep them coming!

Chapter 4-Revelations

Matt blinked as the sunlight filtered through the curtains. He wrapped his arm around Tammy's bare shoulder and listened to her soft breathing. _I never thought I would do that again. After Sora…I thought I was doomed to be lonely forever. It's funny how fate hands you blessings in disguise. _

They stayed this way for a long time and then Matt looked over at the clock. _I need to get a shower. Then maybe I could make breakfast. _His eyes wandered back to the woman who was sleeping peacefully on his chest. _I'm willing to give everything to her. If she wanted me to quit singing…I would do it. I would make the stars stop shining if she asked me to. I want her to be a part of my life always. I want to introduce her to my mom and hell even Gabumon. _His glanced at the clock once again and finally convinced himself to get out of bed. He moved slowly so that he wouldn't wake Tammy up. Carefully he tucked the comforter around her and then he hurried and tiptoed into her bathroom, forcing himself not to stare at the soft pink walls and pink towels.

He took a quick shower and then made his way into her kitchen. It took him a little while to get familiar with where the various items he would need were kept, but he managed to find a way to start making eggs. As he was searching for the milk, his eyes feel on several ingredients in the fridge. _Seaweed, fish, she has several other ingredients like leeks and things. Only someone from Japan would have all these things in their fridge. Either that or she is really interested in Japanese food…_

He scooped the eggs onto a plate and took another look around her apartment. Several items stood out to him. _She has a low table like we do back home and all the flower arrangements here are in a Japanese style that Sora used to do back home. She said she's been to Tokyo a couple of times…but how can someone have all this and only have been there a couple of times. _He noticed a scroll on the wall with kanji written on it. It seemed to be a poem from what he got out of it. His mouth dropped to the floor as he looked in the lower right hand corner where a signature would be. There wasn't a signature there, but a symbol. He walked over to stand in front of the scroll and he gingerly touched the symbol. _The Crest of Purity…no way…it couldn't be…_

His feet automatically took him back into her bedroom and he walked over to the closet to grab his shirt. His eyes widened as he opened the closet door. _That picture…there's no way. _He slowly picked up the picture frame that was inside her closet. He traced the faces of the familiar people in the picture. _We took this picture just before we left the Digital World. But…only members of the Chosen Children got one of these pictures…_

In an urgent rush to prove his theory wrong, he ran to her jewelry box which was on her vanity. He searched through all the pieces of jewelry and then he felt a numbness flood over him as he took out the piece of jewelry that he was looking for. He held it between his fingers and relished the coolness of the metal. _It's her necklace of the Crest of Purity. It really is her. There's no mistake._

His sapphire eyes rested on the woman lying in bed. _Tachikawa, Mimi…she lied to me! She lied about who she was! _

He threw the necklace back into the jewelry box and shut the lid. He walked back into the kitchen and ate his eggs. _I can't believe she would deceive me like that! And I was such a fool to believe her! I can't believe I could be so stupid. She totally played on my situation with Sora to her advantage! _

He suddenly heard rustling coming from Mimi's bedroom and his stomach dropped. _What the hell am I supposed to say to her? I deserve to know why she lied to me, don't I?_

Mimi poked her head out the door and smiled at him. "Hey I was wondering where you went off too. I'll just take a quick shower and then I'll come eat okay."

Matt nodded quickly and she disappeared. He listened as the water began to run. Inside his mind, he began to plan what he would say the moment that she came out. He walked back into her closet and grabbed the picture. He snatched the necklace out of the jewelry box and returned to the couch to wait.

_Why would she lie to me like that? What could she possibly have to hide from me that would cause her to lie about who she really was? Didn't she have any idea how much this would hurt me, especially now that my feelings are involved?_

His stomach dropped as the water turned off. _Just the thought of her lying to me like this makes me want to throw up. The signs were there and I was too blind to see who she really was. _

He listened as she blow dried her hair and then his grip on the picture and the necklace tightened as he heard the door to the bathroom open. Mimi emerged from the bathroom and smiled as she went down the hall to see Matt. Her smile quickly faded when she saw the items in his hand.

"Matt…I…" she started.

"You'd better have a good explanation for this." Matt hissed coldly while thrusting the picture and the necklace at her.

"I can explain." Mimi whispered.

"I can't believe you'd do something like this! You lied to me Mimi! You made me believe that you were someone else! I thought you were better than that, but no! You snuck around and used my situation to your advantage!" Matt exploded.

She took a step back as she saw Matt's rage beginning to surface. _It's just like…what happened with Michael. He used to get like this. _

"The least you could have done was tell me who you were from the beginning! I acted like a lovesick fool and you used me! You let me think that I was falling in love again and that someday I was going to get over Sora!"

"Matt…please let me explain. I didn't intentionally deceive you. And you're right…I should have told you at the beginning who I really was. But I thought…that if I told you who I was…"

He stared at her, waiting for her to continue. Tears began to fall down her cheeks as she took a few deep breaths.

"I thought that you wouldn't love me if I told you who I was. You didn't before…back when we were kids. I knew that if I told you who I was that you wouldn't just overlook me. That's what happened when I helped you capture Sora's heart. You didn't realize that I loved you Matt. I loved you! And you glossed over me so that you could get with Sora." Mimi's hands tightened into fists.

Matt's eyes widened at her outburst, but the shock quickly wore off as another wave of rage crashed over him.

"Regardless, you should have told me! You played me Mimi! All you did was lead me on, making me believe that you were someone else!" His hands tightened into fists as he grabbed the picture out of her hands, "You weren't true to your crest were you?! You lied and deceived me! You don't deserve to be a Digidestined! I…I hate you Mimi!"

Mimi's eyes widened as Matt threw the picture on the floor, causing glass to shatter all over the floor. Matt reached for his coat and put it on. Mimi rushed forward and grabbed his arm.

"Please don't go." She whispered between the sobs that she was holding back.

Matt took his arm out of her grasp and stared at her coldly, "I don't ever want to see you again. It's over Mimi."

He adjusted his coat and walked out the door, slamming it behind him with a loud bang.

* * *

Matt's limo took him back to the hotel and he ignored the stares of his band mates as he went to his room. He slammed the door and threw off his tuxedo that he had worn the night before. He quickly put on a pair of jeans just as he heard a knock at his door.

The door slowly opened and Takeru walked into his bedroom.

"Onii-chan…did something happen?"

Matt pulled on a black t-shirt and turned to face Takeru. "Did you know who she really was? Did you know she was Mimi?"

Takeru looked at the floor, "Yeah, Hikari and I knew as soon as we saw her. I just didn't get a chance to tell you."

Matt slammed his fist onto the bedside table as he sat on the edge of the bed. "I was so stupid Takeru. I should have seen it. It was right there in front of me and I didn't see who she really was."

Sympathy flashed through Takeru's eyes. He sat on the edge of the bed next to his brother and put his hand on his back. "I'm sorry Onii-chan. I should have told you sooner. Then maybe you wouldn't be going through his. I know how much you'd grown to love her. And the whole situation with Sora didn't help you. But she had to have her reasons for doing what she did. Maybe you two just need some time to sort this out."

Matt shook his head, "I don't ever want to see her again. She lied to me and she…I can't be with someone who lies to me. I won't go through that again."

Takeru patted his brother's back, "What Sora did really hurt you. All of us know that Onii-chan. But that doesn't mean you have to take what happened between you two out on Mimi. She had nothing to do with it. In fact, wasn't she the one who helped hook you two up in the first place?"

Matt slowly nodded. Takeru smirked, "Do you realize that was a big sacrifice for her? Even though I was young, I could tell she really loved you. She worshiped the ground you walked on and you didn't even notice her. So really…she did the most unselfish thing she could do…by letting you go."

Silence followed as Matt forced himself to calm down. _I don't know what to think anymore. I really don't know what's right anymore. _

"I need to be alone. Please leave." Matt whispered.

Takeru sighed as he got up. "I'll be here if you need me."

Matt listened as Takeru walked over to the door and shut it behind him. _I made the right decision didn't I? Or did I just make the biggest mistake I could ever make?_

Mimi buried her face in her pillow once again as another sob escaped. _I was so stupid. I should have told him from the very beginning. I promised I'd never be like Sora…but I'm exactly like her. I lied and deceived him just like she did. I can see why he would say that he never wanted to see me again. _

Her tears soaked into her already damp pillow. _I'll never get over this. My one and only chance with Matt and I totally blew it. I don't deserve him. _

Suddenly there was a knock at her door. She looked towards the door and then turned on her side. _I don't want to talk to anybody. All I want to do is lay in bed for the rest of my miserable life. _

A few moments passed and then the knocking started again. Mimi ignored it once again, only to hear it a third time a few moments later. _It's not going to stop is it? I guess I better get up and go see who's at the door. _

She forced herself out of bed and walked across her living room to the door. She turned the knob and opened the door.

"Mimi-san…can we talk?"

Then she stepped aside and let them in. _I should be a good host regardless of how much I'd rather be in bed right now. _She hurried and got a kettle of water on the stove and grabbed some tea bags out of the pantry. Then she sat on the couch opposite her guests.

"So…what brings both of you here? I'm sure you've heard what happened between me and Ma…Yamato-sama…" Mimi stated.

Takeru's blue eyes met hers. _I feel nothing but sympathy for this girl. My brother isn't easy to deal with, especially now…_

Hikari took Takeru's hand into her own as she too looked at Mimi.

"Yes we heard. Yamato-san is back at his hotel room right now. He hasn't left him room since he got back."

Mimi looked down at the carpet in shame. _I really did hurt him didn't I? He deserves someone better. Someone who will never hurt him and can always make him happy. I can't do that…I'm not good enough to do that. _

Hikari's eyes locked onto Mimi's. "You are worthy of Yamato-san. In fact, I think you're the only one who can make him whole again. You may have hurt him…but you love him so much. I can see it in your eyes. You want nothing more than his happiness. But you were scared…that he wouldn't love the real you. That's why you deceived him, you simply let your fear take possession."

Takeru's eyes lit up, "Yeah Mimi-san! You can get my brother back! All you have to do is tell him how much you really love him and how big of a mistake this was. See what you don't know is that my brother is regretting this as much as you are. You didn't see him when he was alone in his room. He regrets saying those things about you. He still loves you and deep down he wants to be with you. He just let his rage take over when he shouldn't have."

Mimi glanced at Hikari and then Takeru. "I have tickets to his concert. I was thinking about going…but maybe I shouldn't…"

Takeru shook his head vigorously, "You should go Mimi-san. He needs to see you again. You can't give up on him now. Onii-chan needs someone will not give up on him…especially since almost everyone that was important to him has. Our parents did, Taichi-kun and Sora-chan did. So you need to be the one that has enough courage to not give up, even in the face of this."

Mimi sighed, "I don't know if I can. Matt was right…I don't deserve to be a Digidestined. I lied to him and that goes against my crest. He also said that he never wants to see me again."

Hikari stood up and knelt next to Mimi, "I promise you Mimi-san…you didn't go against your crest. None of us is perfect and follows our crest one hundred percent of the time. I know I've given in to the darkness before and Takeru has lost hope sometimes. Onii-chan has been afraid before. And even Yamato-san…he hasn't honored his friendships as much as he should. He even lost friendships. We embody certain traits with our crests, but that doesn't mean we have to be perfect at using and acting out those traits. So really…you're completely deserving of being a Digidestined. Yamato-san said that in anger, he really didn't mean it."

Takeru took a deep breath in. "Please Mimi-san…you have to save my brother. I'm…afraid for him. If he gives up on love like he is right now, then he'll never be truly happy. I know my brother almost better than he knows himself sometimes and I know that he's so scared that he'll be alone the rest of his life." Takeru paused as he ran his hand through his hair.

"Something you may not know is that Onii-chan's greatest fear is being alone. He doesn't mean to, but he's hurt right now and he doesn't know who to trust. Sora was his world…she was everything to him. I never expected that my brother would even want to consider getting married after our parent's divorce. But he and I went ring shopping together. He and I picked out a ring that we knew Sora would love. But she betrayed him in the worst possible way. And honestly I thought he would never love again, but he fell in love with you. So basically what I'm saying is that I'm pleading with you to not give on my brother. He needs you and you need him. Neither of you is going to be happy without the other. So…will you go to the concert tonight and talk to my brother?"

Mimi kneaded her hands nervously. _I don't want to give up on Matt…but I'm so scared. What if he rejects me? What if he still hates me for what I've done? Hikari and Takeru think that I am worthy of Matt…but I'm not so sure. But I love Matt so much…I don't want to lose him. I don't want to let him go without a fight! I can do it! I'll go and talk to him. I'll tell him how much I love him and that I won't let him go without a fight._

She slowly lifted her head and saw Hikari and Takeru smile.

"That's the Mimi-san we know and love." Takeru said.

"There's that fire in your eyes. I know Yamato-san will accept you if you keep that fire burning in your eyes." Hikari added.

Mimi stood up and grabbed her purse. "Hikari-chan, I'm going to need your help. Takeru-kun…can you make sure Matt doesn't find out that I'm coming to the concert?"

"Of course!" Hikari smiled. Takeru nodded.

Mimi smirked.

"We have some major shopping to do. I have to pick the perfect outfit to wear. And…I have to show my true colors." She replied while twisting a piece of her red hair.

The trio laughed heartily as Mimi grabbed her keys and escorted them out of her apartment. _I'm coming Matt…and I won't let you walk away from me without a fight._

* * *

Matt shifted on the bed, wrapping the blanket tighter around him. _I don't want to get out of bed. There's only one other time I've felt this shitty. I don't even want to think about that. _

He knew he was being a huge baby about this whole incident, but right now he couldn't come up with the strength to care. All he wanted to do was hide his face from everyone for the rest of his life. _I hate it. Everyone I ever care about betrays me or leaves me. What is it that makes everyone do that? Is it something I've done? I should have been a better son and then maybe my parents wouldn't have split up. I should have been a better boyfriend, then Sora wouldn't have betrayed me. If I'd been a better friend to Taichi-san, then maybe he would have realized how much I loved Sora and he wouldn't have done what he did. And Mimi…if I would have told her that I loved her…then maybe she wouldn't have lied to me._

He buried his head into the pillow as tears began to prick in his eyes. _I won't let anyone see me like this. No one will see me cry. _Matt heaved as he felt the fresh pain well up in his chest. It threatened to overtake him…swallow and consume him whole. He squeezed his eyes shut as the tears fell into his pillow. His breathing came out shallow and ragged as he attempted to stop himself from sobbing in pain.

_This pain…it's too much to bear. I can't take this all over again. This betrayal is the last straw…I can't take it anymore. _

Matt clenched his hands into fists. _I have to come up with a way to do it. Something that'll end it quick and easy, without anyone finding out. I have to make sure…it's permanent…that no one can stop me. _

Scenarios and possible methods to accomplish his goal began to play in his mind. There was plenty of ways to do it. Few of them were unstoppable. Someone could stop him if the cards were played correctly in most that came to him. Finally one option presented itself. Matt smiled at the thought. _It's permanent if done correctly and it's readily available if I play my cards right. _

Suddenly his door opened and slammed quickly. Matt flinched in momentary surprise. Then he gathered his resolve.

"Go away!" he shouted into his pillow.

There was a slight pause. Matt could hear the shallow breathing of whoever had interrupted his planning.

"No Yamato, I'm not leaving until you come to your senses!"

Matt froze and his eyes widened. _There's no way…and especially not now. _

He stiffened against the bed as he heard him approach. Soon he was standing over him, waiting for Matt to make eye contact. _I'm not going to give you that pleasure you bastard. _

"Fine, don't look at me. But I'm going to beat some sense into you whether you like it or not. You are a stupid son of a bitch! Sora and I both try to apologize to you and you completely blow us off like we're nothing! After all our years of friendship I would think you would treasure that more! But instead you throw it completely away over something that we could have discussed and worked out!" Taichi yelled.

Anger boiled in Matt's veins. _I won't let him talk to me like that! He has no idea the pain I'm going through!_

Within mere seconds, Matt had jumped out of the bed and had grasped onto Taichi's shirt. He slammed him against the wall, causing Taichi to wince.

"You're the son of a bitch! You were the one who decided to sneak behind my back and have sex with my girl! I would never do something like that to you and you know that! I valued our friendship enough to respect your boundaries! But YOU! You are the one who threw away our friendship Taichi not me!"

Taichi gritted his teeth as he clenched his hands into fists. "You play the victim really well Yamato! You knew that Sora hated your fame! She didn't like being in the limelight and you chose your career over her! She came to me for comfort and support! Now I admit that things got out of hand with Sora, but I can't change that Yamato. I've loved Sora since we were kids and that's never changed! I had enough respect for both of you to let her be with you against my better judgment. And I've tried so hard to make things right between us, but you won't listen to a word either of us has to say!"

Matt shook his head angrily, "I hate you Taichi! I hate you more than anything in my life! You robbed me of the girl that I wanted to marry! Do you have any idea how hard it was for me to get up the courage to want to get married at all after what happened with my parents? And you chose to ruin all of it! And you're not even sorry for stealing her because you are still with her! You and her are still together aren't you?!"

Taichi grabbed Matt's wrists and squeezed with a surprising amount of force. Matt cried out in pain and released Taichi. He knelt in down and held his wrist as pain coursed through his body. Taichi brushed himself off and looked down at Matt.

"You're right. Sora and I are still together. I love her and she loves me. I hate to think that our relationship started in secrecy and betrayal, but it did. And I don't regret getting with Sora. What I regret…is causing you this much pain. You are like a brother to me Yamato and I stay awake at night thinking about how much I hurt you. I wish there could have been a way to be with Sora without hurting you. But there wasn't and there's nothing I or anyone can do to change that." Taichi took a deep breath as he continued, "But you don't have any right to take your pain out on Mimi-san. She doesn't deserve the blame when she wasn't involved in it. Now I admit, she lied to you about who she was and she shouldn't have done that. She should have been honest from the beginning. But you can't change the choice she made Yamato. She chose to hide her true identity from you. All you can do is move past it."

Matt looked down at the floor as he listened to Taichi's words. "It hurts…" he whispered almost inaudibly.

Taichi knelt down in front of Matt and put his hand firmly on his shoulders. "I know she hurt you Yamato. She hurt you deeply and naturally you lashed out in anger. And it's okay to feel angry. But…you can't let your anger cause you to make the worst decision in your entire life. You love her Yamato, I know you do. And you shouldn't force her out of your life just because of this. Love is supposed to conquer all remember? And I really believe that your love for her can get over this. You just have to let yourself get over all this pain you've been feeling."

Matt frowned as he felt more tears pricking. _Maybe Taichi is right. I love Mimi so much. And I was a complete jack ass to her. But how can I fix this after what happened in her apartment?_

He leaned down and rested his forehead on Taichi's shoulder. "I don't know what to do Taichi. I said some horrible things to her. I don't think she'll be able to forgive me."

Taichi chuckled, "You don't give Mimi-san enough credit. She has a big heart and I bet she loves you as much or more than you love her. All you have to do is apologize to her. Tell her how wrong you were and how much you really do love her. That's all it takes Yamato. I'll even go with you if you want."

Yamato swallowed nervously. _She deserves an apology. I love her and I need to admit how badly I wronged her. I want to get over this. I want…to be with her…for the rest of my life if she'll have me. _

Taichi took Matt's hand in his and helped him to his feet. "Come on Yamato. You're going to go tell her exactly how you feel. I'll be with you every step of the way so you won't be alone."

Matt looked into Taichi's chocolate brown eyes and smirked. "Thanks for being there for me Taichi…even when I didn't want you to be."

Taichi grinned, "What are friends for Yamato? You and I will always be there for each other right? We're like brothers after all."

Then he extended his hand towards Yamato once more. "Brothers through thick and thin…always and forever?"

Yamato took his hand firmly in his. "Always,"

With their arms around each other's shoulders, they walked out of Matt's bedroom and outside the hotel. They got into a limo that appeared a few moments later. Matt stared at the skyscrapers of New York City as the limo pulled away from the hotel. _I'll help you understand how sorry I really am Mimi. I love you and I won't let you walk out of my life, just because of a stupid mistake. Wait for me Mimi…I'm coming for you. _

* * *


	5. Touch My Hand

White Moon Princess: Sadness this is the last chapter! I want to send an extra big thank you to all of your reviews and favorites for this story. I especially want to thank those of you who reviewed every single chapter without fail. Those reviews really kept me going! But don't fret (smirks at the crowd of adoring fans)...I am starting a new story. It is called Obsessions and as soon as I have it back from my beta I will post it for all of you. I will make sure to get a PM out to those of you who reviewed to this story so that you will know when it comes out. I hope to see all your reviews and constructive critisism. Just a note about Obsessions, it will be a bit darker than this story, but it will be a Mimato! Can't wait to see your reviews and thank you again to all of you who reviewed!

Chapter 5-Touch My Hand

Mimi and Hikari shopped in the Fashion District for several hours. Mimi smiled at the outfit she had picked to wear to the concert that night. She giggled at seeing Hikari struggle to carry the bags of clothes she had bought.

"Hikari-chan, you certainly found a lot of clothes. I hope it all fits in your closet at home."

"Mimi-san…can you handle Yamato-san being famous?" Hikari asked.

Mimi smirked, "I am famous myself so I know exactly what he'll be going through. Sora wasn't famous so she didn't know how to handle it when Matt did become popular. He and I will have busy schedules, but I'm sure we can work it out."

Hikari nodded solemnly, "If he asked you to quit, would you do it?"

Mimi looked at the pavement as she thought through her answer. _I love modeling and I know I'm good at it. I've made many sacrifices to get where I am today. But I also love Matt. And I know he wouldn't ask me to give it up unless he had a very good reason. I would want what's best for him and I certainly would respect his wishes. _

"Yes I would. Matt supports my career and he wouldn't ask me to quit unless it was for a reason. I want what's best for him and if that means that I give up my dream then so be it."

Mimi led Hikari into a chic salon and walked over to her own personal stylist. She greeted his warmly with air kisses and a hug.

"George, I know this is short notice and all, but I need another dye job and fast. I also was wondering if you could help my friend out here. We're going out tonight and want to look our best."

George pushed his square glasses a little further up his nose. "Mimi dearest anything for you! I would love to get you ready for a night on the town. What color did you have in mind?"

"Caramel brown please." She replied with a smile.

* * *

Matt hurried up the stairs with Taichi in tow. He knocked on Mimi's door several times and his brow furrowed when she didn't answer. Taichi shrugged lazily.

"Maybe she went to the store to get some Ben & Jerry's."

Matt shook his head. _I guess she could do that, but Mimi was pretty devastated so I doubt that she'd be going anywhere for at least 24 hours. She had a carton of Ben & Jerry's in her freezer so I seriously doubt she left to get ice cream. Something else is going on and I need to find out what it is. _

He leaned over and flipped the mat over. He frowned to see that there was no key under the mat. _Smart woman, but completely inconvenient. _He glanced at Taichi before reaching for his wallet. Taichi's mouth fell open when he saw Matt take out one of his old credit cards that he didn't use anymore. Matt slipped it inside the door and began to work on forcing the lock open.

"Yamato, you're seriously going to go through with this? What if someone catches us? We could end up with breaking and entering on our records."

Matt smirked as he jerked the credit card down the slit on the side of the door. "Relax Taichi. I did this all the time back home. And it won't take long to get in. Once we do, we'll talk to Mimi and no one will know the wiser."

Both men sighed in relief when the door jerked and then swung open. Matt quickly walked into the apartment with Taichi following behind. He shut the door quickly behind him. Matt looked around the apartment and then jogged to her bedroom.

His eyes closed as the smell of her perfume washed over him. He bit his lip to stop himself from moaning in desire. _I miss her. Just smelling her perfume makes me want to…but I've got to focus._

His eyes wandered around her bedroom looking for any clues. Several outfits were haphazardly strewn on the bed. _Mimi wouldn't just throw clothes on the bed like this unless she was in a hurry. But what would cause her to be in such a hurry?_ Taichi grasped Matt's shoulder and whistled.

"Wow, she has an awesome bedroom. Her closet is bigger than my room."

Matt snorted, "Dude you have no idea. Her bed is huge too. It could easily fit 3 people."

Taichi's eyes widened and then a wicked grin spread over his face, "And would you know this by experience?"

Matt shrugged his shoulders indifferently. "What of it? I don't see why you would give a damn if I did sleep with Mimi. You are getting plenty with Sora."

Taichi's grin widened, "Yep, I'm getting plenty. I was just curious…well it looks like Mimi's not here. We'll have to try and track her down before the concert tonight."

Matt nodded as he followed Taichi out of Mimi's bedroom and out of the apartment.

* * *

Mimi bit her lip nervously as she walked towards the stadium where Matt's band was going to play. She sighed as she felt her phone vibrating inside her purse. Pulling it out, she glanced at the number. _Matt again…this is like the fiftieth time today. I've lost count of how many messages he's left pleading with me to call him back. _Mimi showed her ticket to the man at security and was ushered in the doors. She began to make her way down the aisles towards the front row.

Her stomach did several flip flops during the opening act, though she hardly paid attention to the band that was on stage. She couldn't even remember the name of the band, let alone what they were singing about. _I'm so nervous. I don't even know how or when I'll get to talk to Matt. What am I going to say if I do? _

She gulped loudly as the band left the stage. A few moments later, a man cleared his throat and the audience fell silent.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome…all the way from Tokyo, Japan…The Lone Wolves!"

Sweat began to form on Mimi's palms as smoke crept onto the stage followed by a blast of fire. Her eyes automatically locked on Matt as he began to sing. No matter how she tried to look away in shame, she couldn't tear her eyes away from him. She listened intently to every song he sang. Every word that came out of his mouth echoed inside her soul. _His voice…it's calling to me. Oh Matt…please take me back. Please…because…_

"I love you!"

She blinked in shock as green light surrounded her. It seemed to emit from her and fill the room. But no one else seemed to notice at all. They were cheering and screaming as though nothing unusual was happening. She looked down at her chest and smiled. _The Crest of Sincerity…of course. _

Slowly she turned her focus from her crest that was glowing to Matt. His eyes were as wide as saucers. And his eyes were locked with hers. During a break in his song, he mouthed her name. The air in her lungs rushed out in a sigh of longing. The song ended and Matt turned to his other band mates.

"Change in plans boys. I want to play Touch My Hand."

All three of his band mates raised their eyebrows.

Naoki was the first to recover from the shock, "Are you sure man?"

"Yeah…I mean…you wrote that song…for Sora." Akio added.

Matt nodded, "Yeah I want to do this. I have a special lady out there that needs to hear this song."

Haru smirked in agreement. "You heard him guys. Touch My Hand it is."

Matt turned back to the mass of screaming people. "This last song is one I wrote for someone really special. I want to dedicate this song to my special lady out there. This song is called Touch My Hand everybody."

Saw you from the distance,  
Saw you from the stage,  
Something 'bout the look in your eyes,  
Something 'bout your beautiful face,  
In a sea of people,  
There was only you,  
I never knew what this song was about,  
But suddenly now I do,

Trying to reach out to you,  
Touch my hand,  
Reach out as far as you can,  
Only me, only you, and the band,  
Trying to reach out to you,  
Touch my hand,

He took his hand off the guitar strings and reached for Mimi's hand.

Almost as if it had a mind of its own, her hand reached out towards Matt's. _But I hurt him so much. I really was horrible to him. _In a moment of hesitation, she brought her hand down to her chest.

Hurt flashed through Matt's eyes. Mimi shook her head, pleading with him to understand. _No Matt…I want you so much. I just feel…such shame for what I did to you. It was inexcusable. But I hope…deep down that you can find it in your heart to forgive me. _

Can't let the music stop,  
Can't let this feeling end,  
Cause if I do it'll all be over,  
I'll never see you again,

Mimi bit her lip. _I can feel his pain and his…desire. He really believes what these lyrics are saying. He doesn't want this moment to end. He's afraid if this moments ends…then…everything will end. I don't want it to end Matt. You must understand that. _

Can't let the music stop,  
Until I touch your hand,  
Cause if I do it'll all be over,  
I'll never get the chance again,  
I'll never get the chance again,  
I'll never get the chance again,

Matt wished at this moment that he wasn't singing and he could just talk to her. _I need to show her how much she really means to me. I love her regardless of what's happened between us. She means the world to me and I'm not going to stop until she understands. _

I see the sparkle of a million flashlights,  
I wonder why all the stars,  
But the one that's shining out so bright,  
Is the one right where you are,

_Mimi…my sweet Mimi…I want you to be mine forever and always. I will keep my promise to you. I promise to treasure you every single day. You are the sun that shines on my world. Your pull on me keeps me close to you. I can't pull away even if I wanted to. _

Trying to reach out to you,  
Touch my hand,  
Reach out as far as you can,  
Only me, only you, and the band,  
Trying to reach out to you,  
Touch my hand,

Can't let the music stop,  
Can't let this feeling end,  
Cause if I do it'll all be over,  
I'll never see you again,

Can't let the music stop,  
Until I touch your hand,  
Cause if I do it'll all be over,  
I'll never get the chance again,  
I'll never get the chance again,

Saw you from the distance,  
Saw you from the stage,  
Something 'bout the look in your eyes,  
Something 'bout your beautiful face,

Can't let the music stop,  
Can't let this feeling end,  
Cause if I do it'll all be over,  
I'll never see you again,

Can't let the music stop,  
Until I touch your hand,  
Cause if I do it'll all be over,  
I'll never get the chance again,  
I'll never get the chance again,

Mimi blinked. _He doesn't want to pull away. His hand is still stretched out…he still wants me. After everything…he still wants me. _Matt smiled as her face lit up. _She finally understands. She knows now that I'll always love her. No matter what…I'll always be with her. _

Matt stretched his hand a little farther towards her. Mimi's eyes widened as the girls around her began to scream and some were even getting angry that he was stretching his hand out to just her and not everyone else.

Trying to reach out to you,  
Touch my hand, (I'll never get the chance again)

Mimi nodded her head and reached out her hand towards his. _I don't want this moment to end. I want Matt and me to be together forever. _

Matt took her hand in his and smiled. To everyone's surprise he reached down with his other hand and wrapped it around Mimi's waist. He pulled her onto the stage and he chuckled as he heard a yelp of surprise escape her lips.

Reach out as far as you can, (I'll never get the chance again)  
Only me, only you, and the band,  
Trying to reach out to you,  
Touch my hand,  
Yeah, yeah

Once the song ended, the crowd erupted into cheers. But Matt didn't seem to notice. His eyes locked with Mimi's and he cupped his hand on her cheek.

"I love you Mimi."

He leaned down and captured her lips in his. There were shouts in the crowd and some girls began to wail.

After the shock of the kiss wore off, Mimi wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer to her. _I'm never going to let you go Matt. You and I will be together forever. _

Matt pulled away after a few moments, but he kept his arm wrapped around her waist. "Good night New York City. Thank you for letting us come and play for you tonight."

Mimi followed Matt as he slipped backstage. He took off the microphone that he had attached to him. Then he glanced at Taichi and Sora, who were standing nearby.

"Taichi…thank you for making me realize how big of an idiot I was."

Taichi smirked and smacked Matt on his back. "That's my job. Someone has to tell you when you're being a stupid jack ass."

Mimi squeezed Matt's hand as she looked at Sora. Matt's eyes met hers and followed her gaze. He looked at the ground.

Mimi shook her head as she grabbed his chin and brought it close to her. She brushed her lips across his ear. He took a quick breath in. _I hate when she does this. She's tempting me. She wants me to moan. Oh hell, Mimi don't do this. _

"Keep your mind out of the gutter dearest. You need to forgive Sora. What she did was wrong and no one is denying that she deserved losing you. But it's time to forgive and move on."

Matt leaned over to her ear and paused for a moment, letting his breath wash over her ear. "I will. Just not yet…I'm not ready. But in time…I'll be ready."

Sora slowly approached both them. Mimi glanced at Sora and pulled away from Matt.

"Sora-chan, it's good to see you again."

"I just want to thank you Mimi-chan. You've healed Yamato's wounds in a way that no one else could. I'm glad he has someone like you to take care of him." She turned to face Matt, "And Yamato…I hope that someday you will forgive me. And I want you to know that I'll always be there if you need me."

Matt nodded. Sora smiled and walked over to Taichi's side. She and Taichi slipped out of the room, leaving Mimi and Matt alone. Matt turned towards Mimi and took her hands in his.

"Mimi…I'm sorry for the way I acted. I didn't listen to what you had to say and I was too consumed with my own hurt to really understand why you did what you did. I almost lost you and I promise you…I will not take you for granted. I may not be perfect and I certainly have a lot of shitty things in my life. But I will love you and treasure you every day of my life."

Tears filled Mimi's eyes. _I can't believe this is actually happening. My dreams are finally coming true. _

"Oh Matt…"

"Please let me finish. There's something else I want to say. Mimi Tachikawa…"

He knelt down on his knee and pulled a box out of his pocket. He opened the box gingerly and then looked up at her. "I can't spend another day without you. I want to give you everything that you've ever wanted. I want to wake up to you every single morning for the rest of my life. So I guess what I'm saying is…Mimi…will you marry me?"

Tears were cascading down Mimi's face like a waterfall. Silence followed in the moments afterward. Then she slowly took a breath and opened her mouth. "Matt…of course I'll marry you."

Matt's face lit up like a child on Christmas morning as he slipped the ring on her finger. He wrapped his arms around her waist and brought her into a kiss. The fire and passion of the kiss roared through their bodies. But after a moment, Matt pulled away and lifted her off her feet. He twirled her around him and laughed as she squealed. Her squeal turned into laughter as they enjoyed their moment together. No matter what happened in life, no matter what people would say…they would always treasure each other. _I'll always treasure you forever and always…_


End file.
